psychosurgery
noun
psy·cho·sur·gery
ˌsī-kō-ˈsər-jə-rē 
-ˈsərj-rē
: cerebral surgery employed in treating psychic symptoms
Examples of psychosurgery in a Sentence
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In 1941, Freeman, together with a young neurosurgeon named James Watts, performed psychosurgery on a 23-year-old Rosemary Kennedy, whose father, Joseph, feared that the combination of her nascent sexuality and intellectual slowness might bring embarrassment to the Kennedy name.
—
Daphne Merkin, The Atlantic, 10 July 2022
In other words, H.M. was an epileptic who underwent experimental psychosurgery with no clear medical rationale.
—Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 2 July 2016
The fascination with psychedelic drugs, psychosurgery, brain-stimulation devices, intravenous infusions, etc., is symptomatic of the current mental health crisis.
—New York Times, 31 May 2018
Although Moniz would share the 1949 Nobel Prize in medicine for his pioneering work in psychosurgery, the lobotomy had not only fallen out of favor by the 1950s but was being excoriated as a barbaric practice.
—Tony Long, WIRED, 12 Nov. 2010
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Daphne Merkin, The Atlantic, 10 July 2022
In other words, H.M. was an epileptic who underwent experimental psychosurgery with no clear medical rationale.
—Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 2 July 2016
The fascination with psychedelic drugs, psychosurgery, brain-stimulation devices, intravenous infusions, etc., is symptomatic of the current mental health crisis.
—New York Times, 31 May 2018
Although Moniz would share the 1949 Nobel Prize in medicine for his pioneering work in psychosurgery, the lobotomy had not only fallen out of favor by the 1950s but was being excoriated as a barbaric practice.
—Tony Long, WIRED, 12 Nov. 2010
Cite this Entry
“Psychosurgery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/psychosurgery. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
psychosurgery
noun
psy·cho·sur·gery
-ˈsərj-(ə-)rē
plural psychosurgeries
: cerebral surgery employed in treating psychic symptoms
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