Ethical Issues in Psychosurgery

First published in 1985, Ethical Issues in Psychosurgery examines the continuing debate surrounding the treatment of psychiatric disorder by psychosurgery and its ethical implications. Psychosurgery represents a radical treatment and it therefore raises, in a particularly acute and challenging fashion, questions which are implicit In most therapy. The book offers a focussed study in bioethics, a model for bioethical inquiry, as well as introduction to some of the major problems in bioethics. These range from detailed discussions of informed consent, the sanctity of the brain, and the use of experimental therapies, to wider questions of social contract and professionalization. John Kleinig's balanced and informed treatment of the questions will make this book invaluable not only to those concerned with the philosophy of legal and medical ethics, but also to those in the fields of psychiatric practice and research.

John Kleinig

Introduction 1. Background 2. Occasions for Psychosurgery 3. The Subjects of Psychosurgery 4. The Procedure 5. The Effectiveness of Psychosurgery 6. The Social Dimensions of Psychosurgery References Index