Electroconvulsive therapy
medical procedure
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a psychiatric treatment that causes a generalized seizure by passing electrical current through the brain. ECT is often used as an intervention for mental disorders when other treatments are thought to be inadequate. Conditions responsive to ECT include major depressive disorder, mania, and catatonia.
ECT evolved from early seizure-inducing treatments and 18th–19th century electrical experiments into a formal procedure in the 1930s, later becoming widely used in the 1940s–50s. It then declined in use due to safety concerns and negative perception. With the introduction of anesthesia, muscle relaxants, and improved techniques, it became more safe and regulated, leading to its modern use as a treatment for severe psychiatric conditions.
The general physical risks of ECT are similar to those of brief general anesthesia.
Immediately following treatment, the most common adverse effects are confusion and transient memory loss. Among treatments for severely depressed pregnant individuals, ECT is one of the least harmful to the fetus.
The usual course of ECT involves multiple administrations, typically given two or three times per week until the patient no longer has symptoms.
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