Electroconvulsive therapy: 80 years old and still going strong

Gazdag, Gábor; Ungvári, Gábor S.

doi:10.5498/wjp.v9.i1.1

Cited by 84 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Modern ECT is mostly used to treat pharmacoresistant mood disorders but has been used to treat schizophrenia as well. ECT is also used to treat schizophrenia in parts of the world where antipsychotics are not practical for financial reasons (Gazdag & Ungvari, 2019). There are positive anecdotal reports as to clinical effectiveness of treating schizophrenia with modern ECT though large studies are lacking (Rado & Hernandez, 2014).…”

Section: Neuromodulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Schizophrenia: Epidemiology, Causes, Neurobiology, Pathophysiology, and Treatment

Volkan¹

2020

jhms

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Schizophrenia is a severe mental illness that has devastating consequences for those who suffer from the disorder. The epidemiology of schizophrenia indicates that it occurs relatively often, in many different contexts, and in conjunction with other disorders, decreasing quality of life and causing premature death. There has been an enormous amount of research into the causes of schizophrenia and there is now have a much better understanding of the genetic, environmental, and psychological factors that contribute to the disease. While there are numerous ways to understand and conceptualize schizophrenia, a unified picture of the neurobiology, changes in brain structure, cognitive and social-cognitive impairments related to the disorder has yet to emerge. Convulsive therapies and psychosurgery were used unsuccessfully, indiscriminately and without scientific validation in the past to treat schizophrenia. Medical advances including advanced imaging technology have now provided the ability to perform specifically focused neuromodulation and psychosurgery in severe and treatment resistant cases of schizophrenia. While still at a preliminary stage, these approaches have the potential to yield effective treatments in the future. For the last 70 years antipsychotic medication has become the prevailing treatment for schizophrenia. However, many people suffering from the disorder have trouble with side-effects and adhering to a regimen of antipsychotic medication. Newer pharmacological agents are being developed and include not only novel antipsychotic drugs, but anti-inflammatory and immunomodulating agents as well. These new agents, used either alone or in combination, have the potential to improve outcomes for people suffering from schizophrenia. Nevertheless, conclusively better pharmacotherapies will likely not arise until there is better understanding of the pathophysiology underlying schizophrenia. After the development of antipsychotic medication, psychotherapeutic methods for treating schizophrenia fell out of favor, but there is currently some reversal of this trend. The use of newer psychotherapies and modified forms of older therapeutic treatments are not only targeting the symptoms of schizophrenia but are also now focusing on recovery from the disorder. These newer approaches as well as efforts at preventing schizophrenia show promise in reducing the suffering caused by this disease.

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Section: Neuromodulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Schizophrenia: Epidemiology, Causes, Neurobiology, Pathophysiology, and Treatment

Volkan¹

2020

jhms

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“…On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the invention of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) equipment, there was renewed interest among investigators in its origins, historical development and outcomes (Gazdag and Ungari, 2019; Kellner, 2018; Kim, 2018; Read et al, 2019), thus adding to earlier reviews (e.g. Arya and Basu, 2015; Fink, 1988, 1999, 2001; Kalinowsky, 1949, 1964a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The electroshock triangle: disputes about the ECT apparatus prototype and its display in the 1960s

Sirgiovanni¹,

Aruta

2020

Hist Psychiatry

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In the early 1960s, a climate of public condemnation of electroconvulsive therapy was emerging in the USA and Europe. In spite of this, the electroshock apparatus prototype, introduced in Rome in 1938, was becoming hotly contended. This article explores the disputes around the display of the electroshock apparatus prototype in the summer of 1964 and sheds new light on the triangle of personalities that shaped its future: Karl and William Menninger, two key figures of American psychiatry in Topeka; their competitor, Adalberto Pazzini, the founder of the Sapienza Museum of the History of Medicine in Rome; and, between them, Lucio Bini, one of the original inventors of ECT, who died unexpectedly that summer.

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“…Subsequently, Meduna conducted the first human experiment by using camphor intramuscular injections (4). Finally, camphor was replaced by electricity to achieve more stable therapeutic effects by Ugo Cerletti and Lucio Bini, from which ECT was born (5).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Originating from the putative relationship between epilepsy and schizophrenia, ECT is now widely used for depression, acute manic episodes, catatonia, and treatment-resistant schizophrenia (20). Over the past 80 years, numerous psychological, psychoanalytical, and biological theories have been built to posit the potential therapeutic mechanisms of ECT (5). The present putative mechanisms of ECT have been primarily focused on structural, functional, and compositional changes of the brain after ECT treatment (21).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Principles of Electroconvulsive Therapy Based on Correlations of Schizophrenia and Epilepsy: A View From Brain Networks

Guo

et al. 2019

Front. Neurol.

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Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was established based on Meduna's hypothesis that there is an antagonism between schizophrenia and epilepsy, and that the induction of a seizure could alleviate the symptoms of schizophrenia. However, subsequent investigations of the mechanisms of ECT have largely ignored this originally established relationship between these two disorders. With the development of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), brain-network studies have demonstrated that schizophrenia and epilepsy share common dysfunctions in the default-mode network (DMN), saliency network (SN), dorsal-attention network (DAN), and central-executive network (CEN). Additionally, fMRI-defined brain networks have also been shown to be useful in the evaluation of the treatment efficacy of ECT. Here, we compared the ECT-induced changes in the pathological conditions between schizophrenia and epilepsy in order to offer further insight as to whether the mechanisms of ECT are truly based on antagonistic and/or affinitive relationships between these two disorders.

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Electroconvulsive therapy: 80 years old and still going strong

Cited by 84 publications

References 47 publications

Schizophrenia: Epidemiology, Causes, Neurobiology, Pathophysiology, and Treatment

Schizophrenia: Epidemiology, Causes, Neurobiology, Pathophysiology, and Treatment

The electroshock triangle: disputes about the ECT apparatus prototype and its display in the 1960s

The Principles of Electroconvulsive Therapy Based on Correlations of Schizophrenia and Epilepsy: A View From Brain Networks

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