Electroconvulsive therapy
Medicine

Electroconvulsive therapy

- February 10, 2022 | April 12, 2022 - Kate

Carrying out electroconvulsive therapy in the medical center "KORSAKOV". Appointment by phone ☎ 8 (800) 555-40-23

Electroconvulsive therapy

Electroconvulsive therapy

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in modern medicine is actively used to treat mental disorders. This is a modified method, which, as part of complex therapy and as an independent method of treatment, gives high results in stabilizing the mental state in people with mania, atypical psychoses, depression (including postpartum), schizophrenia, catatonia, epilepsy. ECT has long been popular in Australia, America and Europe. The effectiveness of this method has been scientifically proven.

Medical Center "KORSAKOV”is one of the few institutions in Russia where you can get modern electroconvulsive therapy. ECT is prescribed to patients in cases where psychotherapeutic treatment and pharmacotherapy do not work, or the patient has contraindications to taking medications. The decision to prescribe ECT to a patient is made by a council of doctors.

Electroconvulsive therapy carried out by a highly qualified doctor in a 24-hour hospital. The procedure is possible only after signing the written consent of the patient (or his legal representative) for treatment.

ECT is needed when:

  • Pharmacological treatment was ineffective;
  • If the patient has a persistent tendency to increase the dosage of the drug;
  • If the patient, for medical reasons, cannot be prescribed certain drugs;
  • If ECT is the only way to save the patient's life.

Many mistakenly believe that electroconvulsive therapy in the treatment of mental disorders can have many negative consequences and risks. However, this method is now actively used to treat mental disorders in the elderly and pregnant women. These are the categories of patients for whom taking medications can result in the most sad consequences.

It is important to understand that all side effects of ECT are minimized with the help of special modern anesthetics and muscle relaxants. At the same time, the impact on brain areas occurs through grouped short-wave impulses, which minimizes all possible risks of memory impairment in the patient after the procedure.

Depending on the severity of the course of the disease and the individual characteristics of the organism, the patient may be prescribed from 2 to 20 procedures of electroshock therapy in order to achieve a state of stable remission or completely recover from a mental disorder. In severe cases, patients after ECT are prescribed a course of individual supportive psychopharmacotherapy. As medical practice shows, after electroconvulsive therapy, the susceptibility to drugs in patients increases significantly.

How is ECT performed?

Electroconvulsive therapy is prescribed to patients after the decision of a consultation of doctors on the basis of data on the ineffectiveness of drug treatment, a tendency to increase dosages of drugs and the absence of contraindications in the patient.

The ECT procedure is carried out in a specially equipped room. Frequency – every other day. The duration of one session is up to 10 minutes. The procedure is performed on an empty stomach in the morning. Schizophrenia and severe depression require an average of 8-10 ECT sessions. The duration of the course is determined by the doctor, based on the diagnosis, the severity of the course of the disease, the effectiveness of previous drug therapy, etc.

At the medical centerKORSAKOV» before the ECT procedure, patients are put into a drug-induced sleep, so they do not feel pain and discomfort during therapy.

This technique makes the electroconvulsive therapy procedure as safe as possible and eliminates the risk of minor injuries. Temporary mechanical ventilation during ECT is not used. Medical practice and reviews of patients treated by this method indicate the high efficiency of electroshock therapy in the fight against mental disorders.

Treatment takes place in several stages:

  • Admission of the patient to the hospital. Examination of the patient, determination of indications or contraindications to electroconvulsive therapy, assessment of all possible risks from the procedure.
  • Preparation for the procedure. Consultation with doctors of narrow specializations (cardiologist, neurologist), hardware follow-up (encephalography, ECG Holter monitoring, X-ray of the cervical spine).
  • Direct ECT procedure. Individual dose selection, active monitoring of the patient at the end of the session.
  • Determining the effectiveness of the treatment. Correction of the drug therapy program, monitoring the patient after discharge from the hospital.

Indications for ECT

The main indication for electroconvulsive therapy is the lack of effect from treatment by any other means. In addition, indications include:

  • Individual intolerance to drugs;
  • Positive dynamics from ECT treatment earlier;
  • The need to obtain positive results of therapy in a short time.

The expediency of using the ECT method is determined for each patient individually. The doctor takes into account several main factors:

  • The severity of the disease;
  • duration of illness;
  • Possibility of effective treatment of the patient by other methods;
  • The presence or absence of psychosis in the patient;
  • The presence of somatic disorders;
  • The patient has a chemical dependence (alcoholism, drug addiction, substance abuse, etc.);
  • The wishes of the patient.

Currently, in psychiatry, the opinion is supported that to prescribe electroconvulsive therapy it is necessary only in the case when all other methods of treating the disorder have already been used – cognitive-behavioral therapy, psychotherapy, treatment with normotics, antipsychotic drugs, hormonal medications. But the use of these methods of treatment is usually not a contraindication to the procedure. It has been scientifically proven that ECT in the early stages of the development of diseases is a highly effective method of treating mental disorders.

Conditions in which the ECT procedure is vital:

  • Severe depressive disorder with mania or suicidal tendencies;
  • manic delirium;
  • catatonia;
  • Mental disorders, in which the patient categorically refuses to eat food and water, which threatens the death of a person from exhaustion and dehydration;
  • neuroleptic syndrome (malignant);
  • Parkinson's disease (with severe akinetic crisis).

The effectiveness of the method and the safety of the procedure

Most often electroconvulsive therapy given to women, including pregnant women. ECT is safer for the expectant mother and fetus than drug treatment and minimizes all possible risks. According to statistics, more than 70% of patients who are prescribed ECT are women (pregnant and breastfeeding), experiencing depression or suffering from other mental disorders.

Modified ECT is performed using modern highly effective drugs (anticonvulsants and anesthetics) that eliminate pain and injury. During the procedure, the patient is unconscious, so he does not experience discomfort and fear.

In the elderly, ECT is prescribed as an alternative to drug therapy. Taking medications can cause great harm to the physical health of an elderly person. The toxicity of drugs in this case can be very dangerous. ECT is effective in the treatment of Parkinson's disease, senile depression, and senile psychosis.

Statistics show that the effectiveness of ECT in the treatment of mental disorders reaches 70%. More than half of patients treated with electroshock therapy not only get rid of external signs of disorders, but also achieve a state of complete remission of the disease. For some diagnoses (eg, schizophrenia), ECT is repeated as maintenance therapy.

How does ECT affect the brain?

According to modern concepts, ECT has a direct effect on the exchange of mediators in the human brain and enhances the activity of the hypothalamic-gapophyseal system, has antiepileptic activity. In addition, electroconvulsive therapy normalizes the electrophysiological properties of the brain.That is why ECT is most commonly prescribed for people with schizophrenia, severe depression, and drug resistance.

Side effects

ECT, like any other treatment, can have side effects. They are associated mainly with the direct effect of therapy on the brain, as well as with the use of general anesthesia and certain medications.

During an ECT procedure, the patient's blood pressure and heart rate briefly rise. This is explained by:

  • The activity of the sympathetic-adrenal system increases;
  • There is an effect on the vasomotor center;
  • An epileptiform seizure occurs directly.

The most common side effects of ECT include:

  • Temporary loss of orientation in time and space;
  • confusion;
  • Distractedness and inability to concentrate on details;
  • Memory disorders;
  • Headaches;
  • dizziness;
  • Feeling tired, weak in the body;
  • Short-term psychomotor agitation (passes a maximum of a few hours after the procedure).

Get detailed advice on electroconvulsive therapy in the clinic "KORSAKOV» can be done by 24-hour telephone or during a personal visit to the institution. ECT in the clinic is performed by highly qualified doctors while maintaining the anonymity of patients.

Checked by a psychiatrist, narcologist: Andrei Mikhailovich Orlov.
Medical information is correct, reliable, up-to-date.
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