Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a medical treatment most commonly used in patients with severe major depression or bipolar disorder that has not responded to other treatments. ECT involves a brief electrical stimulation of the brain while the patient is under anesthesia.
What is the success rate of ECT therapy?
What is the Success Rate of Electroconvulsive Therapy? ECT is an effective medical treatment option, helping as many as 80-85 percent of patients who receive it. Most patients remain well for many months afterwards. The tendency to relapse after a favorable treatment outcome can often be countered by medication after a series of treatments.
What are the contraindications of ECT therapy?
Electroconvulsive Therapy: Contraindications. Due to the physiologic changes associated with ECT, the list of contraindications includes recent MI, heart failure, recent stroke, elevated ICP, aneurysm/AVM at risk of rupture, pheochromocytoma, severe HTN, and cervical spine instability, most of which are only relative.
What are the pros and cons of ECT?
“While ECT can sometimes cause people to lose some past memories, we’ve become much better at mitigating that, and it’s less common and much less severe,” said Seiner, explaining unilateral placements of electrodes and the use of “ultra-brief pulses” better emulate how the brain works, so clinicians can induce seizures with less electricity and fewer side effects.
What is the success rate of ECT?
What is the Success Rate of Electroconvulsive Therapy? ECT is an effective medical treatment option, helping as many as 80-85 percent of patients who receive it.
Is ECT used for severe anxiety?
ECT is not used to treat anxiety and therefore does not have a role in people who have solely an anxiety disorder. ECT may have a role in people who have comorbid depression and anxiety.
Is electroconvulsive therapy an effective treatment for severe depression?
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) can provide rapid, significant improvements in severe symptoms of several mental health conditions. ECT is used to treat: Severe depression, particularly when accompanied by detachment from reality (psychosis), a desire to commit suicide or refusal to eat.
Who is a good candidate for ECT?
People who have had ECT before and responded well are good candidates for ECT. Other first-line indications for the procedure include people who are catatonic or suffering from a form of depression known as psychotic depression (depression associated with delusions and hallucinations).
What condition has the best response to ECT?
Psychosis is perhaps the best-established predictor of ECT response. More than a dozen studies, from the 1950s to the recent Consortium for Research in ECT (CORE) multicenter study, show better response rates for this severe form of depression, in which delusions, paranoia, or both are present.
What does electroconvulsive therapy treat?
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a medical treatment most commonly used in patients with severe major depression or bipolar disorder that has not responded to other treatments. ECT involves a brief electrical stimulation of the brain while the patient is under anesthesia.
Why is ECT used for depression?
With ECT, an electrical stimulation is delivered to the brain and causes a seizure. For reasons that doctors don't completely understand, this seizure helps relieve the symptoms of depression. ECT does not cause any structural damage to the brain.
Who should not do ECT?
Because of increased risks, doctors need to think carefully before they give you ECT if you're: pregnant, elderly, or. under 18 years old.
Is electroconvulsive therapy safe?
ECT is among the safest and most effective treatments available for depression. With ECT, electrodes are placed on the patient's scalp and a finely controlled electric current is applied while the patient is under general anesthesia. The current causes a brief seizure in the brain.
For which disorder was electroconvulsive therapy ECT originally developed as a treatment?
Electroconvulsive therapy was born. In 1938, Cerletti and his psychiatrist colleague Lucio Bini developed the first ECT device and treated their first human patient, a diagnosed schizophrenic with delusions, hallucinations, and confusion.
When is electroconvulsive therapy indicated?
ECT is indicated in patients with treatment-resistant depression or severe major depression that impairs activities of daily living. The definition of treatment-resistant depression is depression that is unresponsive to multiple antidepressant medication trials.
What are indications for ECT?
ECT is used mainly to treat severe depression, but is also indicated for patients with other conditions, including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, catatonia, and neuroleptic malignant syndrome.
What are the indications for electroconvulsive therapy ECT?
Indications. ECT is indicated for selected patients with catatonia, major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and other disorders. Considered one of the most lethal psychiatric disorders, few treatments are currently available for the treatment of catatonia.
What is electroconvulsive therapy?
Electroconvulsive Therapy is a treatment option for patients suffering from severe depression who have been unsuccessful with other forms of treatment.
What is ECT therapy?
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) is a treatment option for patients suffering from severe depression who have been unsuccessful with other forms of treatment, such as antidepressant medication and psychotherapy. A thorough psychiatric evaluation must be completed to determine whether or not a patient is a good candidate for ECT.
How long does ECT surgery take?
The actual procedure itself lasts only a 2-3 minutes and the patient wakes up from the effects of anesthesia within 5 to 10 minutes. It is a well-controlled and highly successful treatment option. Wake Forest Baptist performs ECT as an outpatient and inpatient procedure.
What is ECT used for?
ECT is used for people whose depression is severe or life-threatening or who cannot take antidepressant medication. ECT is often effective in cases where antidepressant medications do not provide sufficient relief of symptoms or in cases where the side effects, caused by antidepressant, are not tolerable.
How effective is ECT?
ECT is an effective medical treatment option, helping as many as 80-85 percent of patients who receive it. Most patients remain well for many months afterwards. The tendency to relapse after a favorable treatment outcome can often be countered by medication after a series of treatments.
What is a PAC in ECT?
If a psychiatrist recommends ECT treatment and the patient agrees with the treatment course, general medical evaluation in the Pre-Anesthesia Assessment Clinic (PAC) is necessary before ECT treatment.
What is the treatment for ECT?
This typically means psychotherapy and/or medication or, in some circumstances, ongoing ECT treatments.
What is ECT therapy?
What is Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)? Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a medical treatment most commonly used in patients with severe major depression or bipolar disorder that has not responded to other treatments. ECT involves a brief electrical stimulation of the brain while the patient is under anesthesia.
What are the side effects of ECT?
The most common side effects of ECT on the day of treatment include nausea, headache, fatigue, confusion, and slight memory loss, which may last minutes to hours.
How long does a seizure last after a brain surgery?
The patient's brain is stimulated with a brief controlled series of electrical pulses. This causes a seizure within the brain that lasts for approximately a minute. The patient is asleep for the procedure and awakens after 5-10 minutes, much as from minor surgery.
Does TMS cause seizure?
It involves the use of rapidly alternating magnetic fields to stimulate specific areas of the brain. Unlike ECT, TMS does not cause a seizure and the patient remains awake through the noninvasive process. TMS typically only has mild side effects including headaches, muscle twitches and pain at the stimulation site.
Is ECT effective for mental health?
ECT’s effectiveness in treating severe mental illnesses is recognized by the American Psychiatric Association, the American Medical Association, the National Institute of Mental Health, and similar organizations in Canada, Great Britain and many other countries. Although ECT can be very effective for many individuals with serious mental illness, ...
Is ECT good for depression?
Extensive research has found ECT to be highly effective for the relief of major depression. Clinical evidence indicates that for individuals with uncomplicated, but severe major depression, ECT will produce substantial improvement in approximately 80 percent of patients. It is also used for other severe mental illnesses, ...
Why It's Done
- Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) can provide rapid, significant improvements in severe symptoms of several mental health conditions. ECT is used to treat: 1. Severe depression,particularly when accompanied by detachment from reality (psychosis), a desire to commit suicide or refusal to e…
Risks
- Although ECT is generally safe, risks and side effects may include: 1. Confusion.Immediately after treatment, you may experience confusion, which can last from a few minutes to several hours. You may not know where you are or why you're there. Rarely, confusion may last several days or longer. Confusion is generally more noticeable in older adults. 2. Memory loss.Some people hav…
How You Prepare
- Before having your first ECT treatment, you'll need a full evaluation, which usually includes: 1. Medical history 2. Complete physical exam 3. Psychiatric assessment 4. Basic blood tests 5. Electrocardiogram (ECG) to check your heart health 6. Discussion of the risks of anesthesia These exams help make sure that ECT is safe for you.
What You Can Expect
- The ECT procedure takes about five to 10 minutes, with added time for preparation and recovery. ECT can be done while you're hospitalized or as an outpatient procedure.
Results
- Many people begin to notice an improvement in their symptoms after about six treatments with electroconvulsive therapy. Full improvement may take longer, though ECT may not work for everyone. Response to antidepressant medications, in comparison, can take several weeks or more. No one knows for certain how ECT helps treat severe depression and other mental illness…
Does Ect Work?
- Extensive research has found ECT to be highly effective for the relief of major depression. Clinical evidence indicates that for individuals with uncomplicated, but severe major depression, ECT will produce substantial improvement in approximately 80 percent of patients. It is also used for other severe mental illnesses, such as bipolar disorder an...
What Are The Steps Involved When Getting ect?
- Before beginning a series of ECT treatments, a patient should receive a thorough psychiatric assessment, including a medical examination and sometimes a basic blood test and an electrocardiogram (ECG) to check heart health. Informed consent is another important part of the process. A patient must provide written informed consent before ECT is administered. In situati…
What Are The Risks and Benefits?
- Like any medical procedure, ECT is has some risks. ECT treatment has been associated with short-term memory loss and difficulty learning. Some people have trouble remembering events that occurred in the weeks before the treatment or earlier. In most cases, memory problems improve within a couple of months. Some patients may experience longer lasting problems, incl…
Other Brain Stimulation Treatments
- Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is used to treat depression that has not responded to other therapies. It involves the use of rapidly alternating magnetic fields to stimulate specific areas of the brain. Unlike ECT, TMS does not cause a seizure and the patient remains awake through the noninvasive process. TMS typically only has mild side effects including headaches, …
Resources
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. 2012. Therapies for Treatment Resistant Depression: A Review of the Research.
- National Institute of Mental Health: Brain Stimulation Therapies
- Mental Health America: Electroconvulsive Therapy
- National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI): ECT, TMS And Other Brain Stimulation Therapies