Neurologic outcome of patients with dorsolateral prefrontal leukotomy.

Few controlled studies of neurologic function in frontal leukotomy patients have been done. The authors compared neurologic examinations of patients who had bilateral leukotomies with those of psychiatric control subjects matched for age, diagnosis, and duration of illness. Cranial nerve dysfunction, abnormal involuntary movements, and primitive reflexes were common. No significant differences between the two patient groups were found. The leukotomized patients were less irritable than control subjects and had statistically higher seizure and death rates. Neurologic abnormalities are, thus, common in elderly chronic psychiatric patients. Surprisingly, patients with bilateral prefrontal leukotomy do not differ from well-matched psychiatric controls on most clinical tests of neurologic function.