Hemiglossectomy

Did you know that during the 18th and 19th centuries, people who stuttered would sometimes undergo a surgical procedure known as hemiglossectomy in an attempt to correct their speech impediment? The procedure involved removing a portion of the tongue in the hopes that it would improve the patient’s ability to speak clearly.

People were actually willing to undergo major surgery in order to improve their speech. It’s hard to imagine what it must have been like to live in a time when stuttering was seen as a shameful and embarrassing condition. Of course, we now know that there are much more effective and less invasive treatments for stuttering, including speech therapy and other non-surgical approaches.