Tulane University
Tulane Anthropologist John Verano in the News
January 7th, 2009
Ancient surgery report honored
By John Pope
A Tulane University anthropologist and his colleagues have won praise from National Geographic News for their article for a scholarly journal about the ancient Incas’ skill at skull surgery.
John Verano was an author of a report that National Geographic described as one of last year’s “Top Ten Archaeology Finds.”
Based on 1,000-year-old skeletons they found near Cuzco, Peru, the researchers said that the Incas removed small portions of people’s skulls to treat head injuries, generally those that men suffered in combat. But because there were no signs of healing, the scholars concluded that, early on, the operation probably was lethal.
However, by the 1400s, the surgeons apparently developed enough knowledge of cranial anatomy to achieve a 90 percent recovery rate, according to the article.
This technique, which has undergone many refinements in the intervening centuries, still is used to reduce pressure on the brain caused by fluid buildup after trauma. The skull fragment is replaced when swelling subsides.
The principal author was Valerie Andrushko of Southern Connecticut State University.
John Verano
Professor - Anthropology
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