Department of Psychiatry

HOW ECT WORKS

Interestingly, as in many widely used treatments in medicine, we do not know exactly how ECT achieves its effectiveness. It is known that the benefits of ECT depend on producing a seizure in the brain and on technical factors in how the seizure is produced. Biologic changes that result from the seizure are critical to effectiveness.

Most investigators believe that specific changes produced by ECT in chemicals that regulate your emotions are the key to restoring normal function. Considerable research is being conducted to isolate the critical biochemical processes.

ECT is given as a course of treatments, with the total number varying from patient to patient. For depression, the typical range is from 6 to 12 treatments, but some patients may require fewer or more.

ECT is extremely effective in providing relief from psychiatric symptoms. However, permanent cures for psychiatric illness are rare, regardless of the treatment given. To prevent relapse after ECT, most patients require further treatment with medications or with maintenance ECT. If ECT is used to protect against relapse, it is usually administered on a weekly or monthly basis