ECT Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT or “electroshock”) is a psychiatric procedure that is frequently used to treat depression andPsychiatrists
Psychiatry
Psychiatry is devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study and treatment of mental disorders. These include various abnormalities that are affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual. Initial psychiatric assessment of a person typically begins with a case history and mental status examination. Physical examinations and psychological tests may be conducted.
What is electroshock therapy?
Jun 29, 2021 · Electroshock therapy, also known as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), is a treatment for severe major depression, bipolar depression, and other mental health conditions. Psychiatrists may recommend...
When do doctors recommend electroshock therapy?
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT or “electroshock”) is a psychiatric procedure that is frequently used to treat depression and other mental disorders. Psychiatrists long ago got the idea that having a convulsion could be therapeutic for patients with mental illness. In contrast, neurologists do everything they can to prevent convulsions and seizures.
How many electroshock treatments will I Need?
Electroshock therapy is a name once used for Electroconvulsive therapy. This therapy is used in psychiatric treatment to induce seizures electrically in anesthetized patients. What maybe comes as a surprise is that the exact mode of action of electroshock therapy still remains unknown.
What are the risks of electroshock therapy?
Jun 10, 2017 · Electroshock or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has come a long way from its terrifying origins. Even the Mayo Clinic explains, “Much of the stigma attached to ECT is based on early treatments in...
See more
For the first few decades of its use, electroshock was administered without anesthesia or muscle relaxants. Inflicting extreme pain, it was damaging to the entire body, causing convulsions so violent as to break bones and teeth. In this context, history provides many examples of electroshock used as an instrument of torture.
What are the types of shock therapy?
Do they still do electroshock therapy?
Is TMS electroshock therapy?
Is ECT the same as shock therapy?
Can ECT damage your brain?
What mental illness does ECT treat?
Whats better ECT or TMS?
What does TMS feel like?
Is TMS therapy legit?
Is TMS the new ECT?
Who has directed shock therapy model?
When did they stop using electroshock therapy?
What is ECT therapy?
ECT. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT or “electroshock”) is a psychiatric procedure that is frequently used to treat depression and other mental disorders. Psychiatrists long ago got the idea that having a convulsion could be therapeutic for patients with mental illness.
What class is an ECT device?
The FDA currently places ECT devices in Class 3 (“unreasonable risk of illness or injury”), along with automated cardiac defibrillators, for example. They are currently considering moving electroshock devices to Class 2 (“safe and effective with suitable controls”), which includes such things as powered wheelchairs, acupuncture needles, and condoms. This change would allow greatly increased use of ECT.
Why is electroporation important?
In biological research, electroporation is used to force drugs into cells through temporary pores. In medicine it is used to kill cancer cells. In psychiatry brain cell damage by electroporation is a likely byproduct of ECT. An electric field affects large cells more strongly than small cells. Since brain cells have fibers that extend over long distances, they are larger and much more at risk of electroporation than the smaller cells that live inside the skull. Because of their size, the brain cells will be the first ones to die.
When did the FDA start regulating ECT devices?
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was given authority to regulate medical devices in 1976. ECT devices were already in use by then, so they were automatically approved without any testing for safety or effectiveness. In response to public pressure to ban ECT, the FDA has held several hearings over the years. Each time they continued to approve ECT devices without requiring any further testing by the device manufacturers.
When was ECT first used?
ECT was first used in 1938 when an Italian psychiatrist, Ugo Cerletti, observed pigs in a Rome slaughterhouse being anesthetized with electroshock before being butchered. His first human patient begged Cerletti, “Non una seconda! Mortifierel” (“Not another one! It will kill me!”).
Is ECT a good treatment?
ECT is much more successful, however, in funding the psychiatric industry. The treatments are inexpensive to deliver, and ECT brings in about two billion dollars per year in the USA alone. The institutions that administer ECT profit handsomely.
When was electroshock therapy first used?
Usually, doctors recommend electroshock therapy when a patient doesn’t respond to any other form of treatment. The first electroshock therapy was completed in 1938, and it becomes widely used in mid 20th century.
What is electro shock therapy?
Electroshock therapy is a name once used for Electroconvulsive therapy. This therapy is used in psychiatric treatment to induce seizures electrically in anesthetized patients. What maybe comes as a surprise is that the exact mode of action of electroshock therapy still remains unknown. Despite that fact, electroshock therapy continues to be used in treatment of severe forms of different psychiatric conditions, such as depression. Usually, doctors recommend electroshock therapy when a patient doesn’t respond to any other form of treatment. The first electroshock therapy was completed in 1938, and it becomes widely used in mid 20th century.
How long does electroshock last?
The seizure lasts for about quarter of a minute. Patient receives an anesthetic in arm and counts backwards until becomes unconscious.
Does electroshock therapy affect memory?
Electroshock therapy is associated with the same risks similar to brief general anesthesia. Patients usually feel confusion and memory loss, right after the treatment. Their muscles may feel very sore and they may suffer from a strong headache. The acute side effects also include amnesia that relates to the events occurring before the treatment as well as for those that happen after the treatment. In general, this is the worst side effect of this treatment, which is generally considered safe. Other common side effects include nausea and difficulty remembering newly learned information. In most cases, the memories will return. Moreover, certain patients have reported improved memory following the treatment, and removal of the amnesia that is often associated with severe depression. However this treatment may seem to be harsh, the amount of electricity that is used is much lower in intensity and duration than that which would be required to result in permanent brain damage. At this point, there is no evidence that electroshock therapy damages the brain, but it still remains one of the possibilities.
Does electroshock damage the brain?
At this point, there is no evidence that electroshock therapy damages the brain, but it still remains one of the possibilities.
Where is the Electroconvulsive Therapy Machine?
Electroconvulsive therapy machine on display at Glenside Museum in Bristol, England. ECT device produced by Siemens and used for example at the Asyl psychiatric hospital in Kristiansand, Norway from the 1960s to the 1980s.
What is ECT used for?
ECT is used to treat people who have severe or prolonged mania; NICE recommends it only in life-threatening situations or when other treatments have failed and as a second-line treatment for bipolar mania.
How many ECT machines are there in China?
As of 2012, there are approximately 400 ECT machines in China, and 150,000 ECT treatments are performed each year. Chinese national practice guidelines recommend ECT for the treatment of schizophrenia, depressive disorders, and bipolar disorder and in the Chinese literature, ECT is an effective treatment for schizophrenia and mood disorders. Although the Chinese government stopped classifying homosexuality as an illness in 2001, electroconvulsive therapy is still used by some establishments as a form of " conversion therapy ".
How long does it take for a person to relapse from ECT?
There is little agreement on the most appropriate follow-up to ECT for people with major depressive disorder. When ECT is followed by treatment with antidepressants, about 50% of people relapsed by 12 months following successful initial treatment with ECT, with about 37% relapsing within the first 6 months.
What is Sarah Goldfarb's treatment for?
In the 2000 film Requiem for a Dream, Sarah Goldfarb receives "unmodified" electroconvulsive therapy after experiencing severe amphetamine psychosis following prolonged stimulant abuse. Unlike typical ECT treatment, she is given no anesthetic or medication before.
How many volts does an electroconvulsive therapy use?
Typically, 70 to 120 volts are applied externally to the patient's head resulting in approximately 800 milliamperes of direct current passed through the brain, for 100 milliseconds to 6 seconds duration, either from temple to temple (bilateral ECT) or from front to back of one side of the head (unilateral ECT).
When did ECT become popular?
ECT became popular in the US in the 1940s. At the time, psychiatric hospitals were overrun with patients whom doctors were desperate to treat and cure. Whereas lobotomies would reduce a patient to a more manageable submissive state, ECT helped to improve mood in those with severe depression. A survey of psychiatric practice in the late 1980s found that an estimated 100,000 people received ECT annually, with wide variation between metropolitan statistical areas. Accurate statistics about the frequency, context and circumstances of ECT in the US are difficult to obtain because only a few states have reporting laws that require the treating facility to supply state authorities with this information. In 13 of the 50 states, the practice of ECT is regulated by law. In the mid-1990s in Texas, ECT was used in about one third of psychiatric facilities and given to about 1,650 people annually. Usage of ECT has since declined slightly; in 2000–01 ECT was given to about 1500 people aged from 16 to 97 (in Texas it is illegal to give ECT to anyone under sixteen). ECT is more commonly used in private psychiatric hospitals than in public hospitals, and minority patients are underrepresented in the ECT statistics. In the United States, ECT is usually given three times a week; in the United Kingdom, it is usually given twice a week. Occasionally it is given on a daily basis. A course usually consists of 6–12 treatments, but may be more or fewer. Following a course of ECT some patients may be given continuation or maintenance ECT with further treatments at weekly, fortnightly or monthly intervals. A few psychiatrists in the US use multiple-monitored ECT (MMECT), where patients receive more than one treatment per anesthetic. Electroconvulsive therapy is not a required subject in US medical schools and not a required skill in psychiatric residency training. Privileging for ECT practice at institutions is a local option: no national certification standards are established, and no ECT-specific continuing training experiences are required of ECT practitioners.
What is ECT therapy?
Electroshock or electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has come a long way from its terrifying origins. Even the Mayo Clinic explains, “Much of the stigma attached to ECT is based on early treatments in which high doses of electricity were administered without anesthesia, leading to memory loss, fractured bones and other serious side effects.” Now it’s performed under general anesthesia and with muscle relaxers. Electrodes are placed on the patient’s scalp so that small currents can pass through the brain to deliberately trigger a brief seizure. Apparently, this action and effect changes brain chemistry in a way that can quickly reverse the symptoms of some mental illnesses. Although there are some side effects from ECT in our day, it is much safer than the old days.
Is ECT a good treatment?
They add, ECT may be a good treatment option when medications aren’t tolerated or other forms of therapy haven’t worked. In some cases ECT is used:
How did electroshock affect the body?
Inflicting extreme pain, it was damaging to the entire body , causing convulsions so violent as to break bones and teeth. In this context, history provides many examples of electroshock used as an instrument of torture.
What war did electroshock torture?
One psychiatrist described his colleagues’ use of electroshock to torture prisoners of the French during the 1954-62 Algerian War:
What machines were used in the Moroccan prison system?
The center also had several Page-Russell electroshock machines, which were routinely used on prisoners. During the post-shock periods, Moroccan physicians questioned the detainees, seeking information about opponents to the king.”.
Why did terror stalk the halls of euthanasia hospitals?
According to history professor Henry Friedlander, “Terror stalked the halls of the euthanasia hospitals not only because patients feared being selected for killing at any time or because some of the staff beat and maltreated them, but also because some medical procedures imposed unusual pain.”.
Where was ECT invented?
It’s surprising that there’s not better science out there on ECT considering the technique has been used since the late 1930s when it was invented in Mussolini’s Italy by psychiatrist Ugo Cerletti. His inspiration for ECT came in a slaughterhouse, where he saw cattle and pigs rendered docile by electricity before being butchered.
Is ECT a good treatment for depression?
Those impressions, say ECT’s supporters, represent an antiquated understanding of the “gold standard” treatment for deep and stubborn depression, the kind that’s resistant to psychotherapy and medication. According to advocates, ECT isn’t crude and dangerous like it was in its early days; today it’s painless, effective and the most common side effect is short-term memory loss.
Is electroshock a therapy?
Supporters of electroconvulsive therapy, popularly known as electroshock, say it’s not what it used to be. Forget images of writhing, unwilling patients forcibly strapped to hospital beds while electrodes attached to skulls deliver blasts of electricity. Forget the pictures of mental patients rendered pliable and shuffling, even catatonic, by the procedure.
ECT Machines
The modern-day ECT machines have evolved a lot compared to the sine wave currents that were used initially. Machines these days deliver only a brief pulse current that causes very few cognitive effects. Usually, the electrical stimulus is about 800 mA and the current lasts between 1-6 seconds.
Risks
There are several risks associated with this therapy that one has to consider before agreeing to this procedure for their loved one. The risks are similar to the effects of brief general anesthesia. Risks involved are:
What is electroconvulsive therapy?
In electroconvulsive therapy, an electric current is passed through the scalp to cause a brief seizurein the brain. ECT is one of the fastest ways to relieve symptoms in people who suffer from maniaor severe depression. ECT is generally used only when medicines or other less invasive treatments prove to be unhelpful. It is also used when mood or psychotic symptoms are so severe that it may be unsafe to wait until drugs can take effect. ECT is also often thought to be the treatment of choice for severe mood episodes during pregnancy.
What is the procedure for ECT?
Prior to ECT treatment, a person is given a muscle relaxant and put under general anesthesia. Electrodes are placed on the patient's scalp, and an electric current is applied that causes a brief seizure. Because the muscles are relaxed, the seizure will usually be limited to slight movement of the hands and feet. The patient is carefully monitored during the treatment. The patient awakens minutes later, does not remember the treatment or events surrounding the treatment, and may be briefly confused.
What is ECT therapy?
Bipolar Disorder and Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) Electroconvulsive therapy, also known as ECT or electroshock therapy, is a short-term treatment for severe manic or depressive episodes, particularly when symptoms involve serious suicidal or psychotic symptoms, or when medicines seem to be ineffective. It can be effective in nearly 75% of ...
What is an ECT in a maniac?
In electroconvulsive therapy, an electric current is passed through the scalp to cause a brief seizure in the brain. ECT is one of the fastest ways to relieve symptoms in people who suffer from mania or severe depression. ECT is generally used only when medicines or other less invasive treatments prove to be unhelpful.
How long does ECT last?
Other possible side effects of ECT include: These side effects may last from several hours to several days. About a third of people who have ECT report some memory loss, but this is usually limited to the time surrounding the treatment.
How often is ECT given?
ECT is usually given up to three times a week, typically for two to four weeks. After that, maintenance treatment can continue weekly or monthly, depending on the person's needs. ECT is among the safest treatments for severe mood disorders, with most risks being related to the anesthesia.
When to use ECT?
ECT is generally used only when medicines or other less invasive treatments prove to be unhelpful. It is also used when mood or psychotic symptoms are so severe that it may be unsafe to wait until drugs can take effect. ECT is also often thought to be the treatment of choice for severe mood episodes during pregnancy.
What is the purpose of electroshock therapy?
Electroconvulsive, or electroshock, therapy, introduced in Rome in 1938 by U. Cerletti and L. Bini, has been widely used in treating disturbances in which severe depression is the predominant symptom.
How does electroshock work?
Bini, has been widely used in treating disturbances in which severe depressionis the predominant symptom. It has been particularly recommended for manic-depressive psychoses and other types of depression. The technique is essentially that of passing alternating currentthrough the head between two electrodes placed over the temples. The passage of the current causes an immediate cessation of consciousnessand the inductionof a convulsive seizure. In general, electroconvulsive treatments are given three times a week for a period ranging from two to six weeks; some acutely disturbed patients, however, have been given as many as two or three treatments in a single day.
How does shock therapy work?
shock therapy, also called Electroshock Therapy, Electroconvulsive Therapy, or Ect, method of treating certain psychiatric disorders through the use of drugs or electric currentto induce shock; the therapyderived from the notion (later disproved) that epileptic convulsions and schizophrenic symptoms never occurred together. In 1933 the psychiatrist Manfred Sakelof Vienna presented the first report of his work with insulin shock. Until the discovery of the tranquilizing drugs, variations of insulin-shock therapy (also called insulin-coma therapy) were commonly used in the treatment of schizophreniaand other psychotic conditions. With insulin-shock treatment, the patient is given increasingly large doses of insulin, which reduce the sugar content of the blood and bring on a state of coma. Usually the comatose condition is allowed to persist for about an hour, at which time it is terminated by administering warm salt solution via stomach tube or by intravenous injection of glucose. Insulin shock had its greatest effectiveness with schizophrenic patients whose illness had lasted less than two years (the rate of spontaneous recovery from schizophrenia also is highest in the first two years of the illness). Insulin-shock therapy also had more value in the treatment of paranoid and catatonic schizophreniathan in the hebephrenic types.
How effective is insulin shock?
Insulin shock had its greatest effectiveness with schizophrenic patients whose illness had lasted less than two years ( the rate of spontane ous recovery from schizophrenia also is highest in the first two years of the illness). Insulin-shock therapy also had more value in the treatment of paranoid and catatonic schizophrenia than in ...
What is insulin shock therapy?
Until the discovery of the tranquilizing drugs, variations of insulin-shock therapy (also called insulin-coma therapy) were commonly used in the treatment of schizophrenia and other psychotic conditions. With insulin-shock treatment, the patient is given increasingly large doses of insulin, which reduce the sugar content ...
Is electroconvulsive treatment more effective than schizophrenia?
Electroconvulsive treatment was more successful in alleviating states of severe depression than in treating symptoms of schizophrenia. Psychosurgery,...
Overview
Society and culture
Surveys of public opinion, the testimony of former patients, legal restrictions on the use of ECT and disputes as to the efficacy, ethics and adverse effects of ECT within the psychiatric and wider medical community indicate that the use of ECT remains controversial. This is reflected in the January 2011 vote by the FDA's Neurological Devices Advisory Panel to recommend that FDA maintain ECT devices in the Class III device category for high risk devices, except for patients su…
Medical use
ECT is used, where possible, with informed consent in treatment-resistant major depressive disorder, treatment-resistant catatonia, prolonged or severe mania, and in conditions where "there is a need for rapid, definitive response because of the severity of a psychiatric or medical condition (e.g., when illness is characterized by stupor, marked psychomotor retardation, depressive delusions or hallucinations, or life-threatening physical exhaustion associated with m…
Effects
Aside from effects in the brain, the general physical risks of ECT are similar to those of brief general anesthesia; the US Surgeon General's report says that there are "no absolute health contraindications" to its use. Immediately following treatment, the most common adverse effects are confusion and memory loss. Some patients experience muscle sorenessafter ECT. A meta-analysis from 2017 found that the death rate of ECT is around 2.1 per 100,000 procedures. Ther…
Procedure
The placement of electrodes, as well as the dose and duration of the stimulation is determined on a per-patient basis.
In unilateral ECT, both electrodes are placed on the same side of the patient's head. Unilateral ECT may be used first to minimize side effects such as memory loss.
Mechanism of action
Despite decades of research, the exact mechanism of action of ECT remains elusive. Neuroimaging studies in people who have had ECT, investigating differences between responders and nonresponders, and people who relapse, find that responders have anticonvulsant effects mostly in the frontal lobes, which corresponds to immediate responses, and neurotrophic effects primarily in the medial temporal lobe. The anticonvulsant effects are decreased blood flow and d…
Use
As of 2001, it was estimated that about one million people received ECT annually.
There is wide variation in ECT use between different countries, different hospitals, and different psychiatrists. International practice varies considerably from widespread use of the therapy in many Western countries to a small minority of countries that do not use ECT at all, such as Slovenia.
History
As early as the 16th century, agents to induce seizures were used to treat psychiatric conditions. In 1785, the therapeutic use of seizure induction was documented in the London Medical and Surgical Journal. As to its earliest antecedents one doctor claims 1744 as the dawn of electricity's therapeutic use, as documented in the first issue of Electricity and Medicine. Treatment and cu…