Department of Psychiatry

INTRODUCTION

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), also known as "shock treatment", is a well established, safe and effective psychiatric treatment for the treatment of depression or other psychiatric conditions. ECT has an extremely high success rate for the treatment of major depressive disorder, catatonia, mania and various psychotic symptoms. Studies have shown ECT to be clinically the most effective treatment for severe depression resulting in improved quality of life in both short- and long-term. With this treatment, a small amount of electricity is applied to the scalp, producing a seizure in the brain. The procedure is painless because the patient is asleep under general anesthesia.

Not all patients improve when treated with medications or psychotherapy (talk therapy). When illnesses, such as depression, become particularly severe, it is doubtful the psychotherapy alone will be sufficient. For some patients, the medical risks of medications may be greater than the risks of ECT. When patients have life-threatening psychiatric problems, such as suicidal tendencies, ECT is often recommended because it usually provides faster relief than medications. Overall, the majority of depressed patients treated with ECT show substantial improvement. Even the majority of those who have not been helped by medications respond to ECT.