Neurosurgery has a long history in Turkey, dating back 10,000 years to trepanation procedures performed on Neolithic skulls. Throughout history, Turkish physicians made important contributions to neurosurgery, including Serefeddin Sabuncuoglu who published an illustrated surgery atlas in the 15th century containing various neurosurgical applications. In the late 19th/early 20th century, pioneers like Dr. Cemil Pasha performed early modern neurosurgical procedures. Dr. Gazi Yaşargil is considered the "father of modern microneurosurgery", developing innovative instruments and techniques still used today. Currently, there are over 1200 neurosurgeons in Turkey trained across 75 residency programs,

1. History of Neurolocigal
Surgery in Turkey

2. My intention is not narrating all of the
Turkish Neurological Surgery History,
but maybe to light a candle in your
mind or maybe giving a cornerstone.

3. Sources
• http://www.turknorosirurji.org.tr/menu/3/norosirurji-nedir
• http://t24.com.tr/haber/unlu-beyin-cerrahi-gazi-yasargilden-tarihi-
duzeltme,207529
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gazi_Ya%C5%9Fargil
• Neurosurgery: November 1999 - Volume 45 - Issue 5 - p 1010 Legacies M. Gazi
Yaşargil:Neurosurgery’s Man of the Century Tew, John M. Jr. M.D.
• World Neurosurgery Volume 79, Issue 1, January 2013, Pages 16–24 The History of
Neurosurgery in Anatolia and Turkey: The Turkish Neurosurgical Society
Ihsan Solaroglu1, , , Feridun Acar2, Murad Bavbek3, Ugur Ture4, Ethem Beskonakli5
• Acta Neurochirurgica
September 2007, Volume 149, Issue 9, pp 943-948
• Surg Neurol. 2005;64 Suppl 2:S115-22. History of neurosurgery and neurosurgical
applications in Turkey.
Naderi S1, Erbengi A.
• A History of the Brain – Andrew P. Wickens From Stone Age Surgery to modern
neuroscience

5. Science is a universal thing.

6. Trepanation(from
the Greek trypanon meaning ‘to bore’)
A History of the Brain – Andrew P. Wickens
FIGURE 1.2 An example of a Bronze Age skull from Jericho,
Palestine, dated from between 2200–2000 BC.
Source: Wellcome Library, London.
FIGURE 1.1 The Peruvian skull is relatively recent and dates from
between 1400 and 1530 AD. It now resides in the American Museum of
Natural History.
Source: Squier 1877, p. 457

7. Many trepanned skulls were found in
Anatolian archaeological works.
The history of neurosurgery in Anatolia goes back 10,000 years. Excavations in Aşıklı
Höyük revealed the remains of a 20- to 25-year-old young woman had “trepanation”
on her skull.

8. One of the most famous Turkish physicians, Serefeddin
Sabuncuoglu, published his color, illustrated surgery book Cerrahiyetül
Haniye(Imperial Surgery) , Imperial
Surgery, in the 15th century. This atlas contains many neurosurgical
applications for epilepsy, hydrocephalus, headache, low back pain,
sciatica, and spinal fractures.

9. Fig. 1. Serefeddin Sabuncuoglu applying cauterization for
the treatment of sciatica. Adapted from Sabuncuoglu
S. Cerrahiyet-ul Haniyye. Istanbul: Medical History
Department, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul
University, 1465. p. 189.

12. Dr.Cemil (Topuzlu)Pasha was a pioneer of modern Turkish surgery.
He performed numerous neurosurgical procedures such as trepanation in
brain abscess and laminectomy. The first page of the article fromDr.
Topuzlu regarding successful drainage of the brain abscess in 1894 is
shown.

13. Dr. Mazhar Osman was the founder of modern neuroscience in Turkey. He was a
neuropsychiatrist who completed his training in Germany with Kreaplin (the founder of organic
psychiatry). Dr. Osman published the first Turkish neuroscience journal between 1916 and 1918.
It contained 11 articles regarding neurosurgery. The cover page of this first neuroscience journal,
Sisli Muessesesinde Emraˆz ı Akliye ve Asabiye Musamereleri, is shown (courtesy of Dr. Sahap
Erkoc).

14. Prof. Mim Kemal Oke (1884 1955), who
replaced Prof. Wieting as the chief of surgery
at Gulhane Military Medical Academy at the
end of the war, was one the most reputable
surgeons of the era and performed numerous
neurotraumatological operations.

15. The certificate given to Dr. Tuner by Dr.
Foerster is the first fellowship certificate given
in neurosurgery specialty in the history of
Turkish neurosurgery.

16. Dr. Hami Dilek worked as fellow of Dr. Vincent and Dr. De
Martel and returned to Turkey in 1936. He established
neurosurgery departments in two different hospitals, including
Haydarpasa Numune Hospital, and became the first residency
program director for neurosurgery in 1947.

17. Acta Neurochirurgica
September 2007, Volume 149, Issue 9, pp 943-948
Dr. Altınok was the
chief of the
department of
neurosurgery from
1968 to 1992 at
Bakirköy Mental
and Psychological
Health Hospital in
Istanbul.

20. He collaborated with Raymond M. P. Donaghy
M.D at the University of Vermont in
developing microneurosurgery. Yaşargil
treated epilepsy and brain tumors with
instruments of his own design.

21. Yasargil clips with
their compression
forceps. This kind of
metallic clips were
developped by
Yaşargil and are still
used during
neurosurgery to
help treat
aneurysms.
Yasargil Leyla Retractor System

30. Currently ,there are almost 1200 neurosurgeons in Turkey and 75 training
clinics at university hospitals and Training and Research Hospitals of the
Ministry of Health provide neurosurgery training. The current state of
neurosurgery in Turkey is parallel to that of the advanced Western
countries. Apart from the application of neurosurgical procedures, there
have been many scientific studies from Turkish neurosurgeons contributing
to the total body of literature in neurosurgery.

31. Turkish Neurosurgical Society
TNS has two scientific peer-reviewed
journals, Turkish Neurosurgery and Türk
Nöroşirürji Dergisi (Turkish Journal of
Neurosurgery). The TNS bulletin was published
four times a year to facilitate communication
within the Society and to keep record of all the
works conducted.
Alongside periodicals, TNS published the Basic Neurosurgery Textbook, which comprises two
volumes and 2144 pages. Moreover, 13 more books on various subjects have been published for
our colleagues.