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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffElectroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a procedure in which electric currents are passed through the brain, deliberately triggering a brief seizure. Electroconvulsive therapy seems to cause changes in brain chemistry that can immediately reverse symptoms of certain mental illnesses. It often works when other treatments are unsuccessful.
Much of the stigma attached to electroconvulsive therapy 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.
Electroconvulsive therapy is much safer today. Although electroconvulsive therapy still causes some side effects, it now uses electrical currents given in a controlled setting to achieve the most benefit with the fewest possible risks.
- Baghai TC, et al. Electroconvulsive therapy and its different indications. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience. 2008;10:105.
- George MS, et al. Nompharmacological somatic treatments. In: Hales RE, et al. The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Psychiatry. 5th ed. Arlington, Va.: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2008. http://www.psychiatryonline.com/content.aspx?aID=338950. Accessed May 25, 2010.
- Payne N, et al. Electroconvulsive therapy: Part I. A perspective on the evolution and current practice of ECT. Journal of Psychiatric Practice. 2009;15:346.
- Fact sheet: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). Mental Health America. http://www.nmha.org/go/information/get-info/treatment/electroconvulsive-therapy-ect. Accessed May 26, 2010.
- Depression: Electroconvulsive therapy. American Academy of Family Physicians. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/mentalhealth/treatment/058.html. Accessed May 26, 2010.
- Doughrerty DD, et al. Somatic therapies for treatment-resistant depression: New neurotherapeutic interventions. Psychiatric Clinics of North America. 2007;30:31.
- Lisanby SH. Electroconvulsive therapy for depression. New England Journal of Medicine. 2007;298:330.
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