prefrontal lobotomy /-frôn″təl/ [L, prae + frons, forehead; Gk, lobos, lobe, temnein, to cut] , a surgical procedure in which connecting fibers between the prefrontal lobes of the brain and the thalamus are severed. An archaic technique, it is rarely used today but formerly was an accepted procedure for treating schizophrenic patients with uncontrollable, destructive behavior. After surgery patients were often apathetic, docile, and lacking social graces and decision-making abilities of even the simplest kind. If only the white fibers are severed, the procedure is called a prefrontal leukotomy.
