Electroconvulsive Therapy News and Research

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Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) involves the induction of a seizure for therapeutic purposes by the administration of a variable frequency electrical stimulus shock via electrodes applied to the scalp.

Oxytocin shows evidence of therapeutic value for autism, schizophrenia

The hormone oxytocin could play a role in treating psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia, according to a review article in the September Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

17 Sep 2013

New form of electroconvulsive therapy could prevent adverse cognitive side effects

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is the most effective acute treatment for severe major depression. However, even with newer forms of ECT, there remains a significant risk of adverse cognitive effects, particularly memory problems.

7 May 2013

Researchers study how ketamine reduces side effects of ECT in people with severe depression

The largest trial into the use of Electroconvulsive Therapy in the UK in more than 30 years will look into how the use of the Class C drug ketamine might reduce the side effects of ECT for those being treated for severe depression.

2 May 2013

Electroconvulsive therapy improves quality of life in patients with severe depression

Patients whose severe depression goes into remission for six months following electroconvulsive therapy report a quality of life similar to that of healthy individuals, researchers say.

16 Apr 2013

New born neurons as a therapeutic strategy: an interview with Mi-Hyeon Jang, Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota

There are two regions in the brain that continue to produce new neurons well into adulthood. One of these regions is the hippocampus and as we converse this region is actively involved in memory formation, mood regulation and cognition.

2 Apr 2013

sFRP3 protein appears to be target of both antidepressant drugs and electroconvulsive therapy

Through a series of investigations in mice and humans, Johns Hopkins researchers have identified a protein that appears to be the target of both antidepressant drugs and electroconvulsive therapy.

11 Feb 2013

Basis of antidepressant drugs and electroconvulsive therapy found

Through a series of investigations in mice and humans, Johns Hopkins researchers have identified a protein that appears to be the target of both antidepressant drugs and electroconvulsive therapy. Results of their experiments explain how these therapies likely work to relieve depression by stimulating stem cells in the brain to grow and mature.

7 Feb 2013

FDA to step up evaluation of metal hip implants, other devices

The Food and Drug Administration is studying whether several medical devices already on the market, such as electroconvulsive therapy devices for depression and emergency defibrillators, require additional evidence to prove they're safe.

19 Jan 2013

Electroconvulsive therapy releases opiate-like substances

Researchers used electricity on certain regions in the brain of a patient with chronic, severe facial pain to release an opiate-like substance that's considered one of the body's most powerful painkillers.

3 Jan 2013

AZD6765 briefly improves treatment-resistant patients' depression symptoms in minutes

A drug that works through the same brain mechanism as the fast-acting antidepressant ketamine briefly improved treatment-resistant patients' depression symptoms in minutes, with minimal untoward side effects, in a clinical trial conducted by the National Institutes of Health. The experimental agent, called AZD6765, acts through the brain's glutamate chemical messenger system.

13 Dec 2012

Zucker Hillside Hospital celebrates opening of new $120 million inpatient pavilion

Zucker Hillside Hospital today celebrated the opening of a new 130,000-square-foot, $120 million inpatient pavilion. Constructed with the generous support of North Shore-LIJ Health System trustees Donald and Barbara Zucker and other donors, the 130,000-square-foot building will consolidate outdated living quarters dispersed across the psychiatric facility's campus, significantly improving the coordination of services and treatment along the continuum of care.

12 Dec 2012

Sharp decline in ECT availability and use in the U.S. general hospitals

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is considered the most effective treatment option for patients with severe depression who cannot find symptom relief through antidepressant medications or psychotherapy. In a new study, researchers at Butler Hospital and Bradley Hospital in Rhode Island found a sharp decline in the availability and use of ECT in general hospitals across the U.S.

21 Nov 2012

BD family history risk factor for recurrent episodes in MDD

A family history of bipolar disorder increases the likelihood of recurrent episodes of hypomania or mania in individuals with prior major depressive disorder, suggest findings published in Bipolar Disorders.

1 Oct 2012

Scientists discover biological marker that may help identify patients’ response to antidepressants

Scientists have discovered a biological marker that may help to identify which depressed patients will respond to an experimental, rapid-acting antidepressant. The brain signal, detectable by noninvasive imaging, also holds clues to the agent's underlying mechanism, which are vital for drug development, say National Institutes of Health researchers.

7 Aug 2012

Psychotic depression now fulfills the criteria for a valid psychiatric syndrome

The number of studies reporting significant and clinically relevant differences between psychotic depression (PD) and non-PD has increased considerably over the past decades. This summary of the current evidence suggests that PD now fulfils the criteria for a valid psychiatric syndrome.

14 Jul 2012

Deep brain stimulation has long-lasting effects in patients with severe depression

People with severe depression are constantly despondent, lacking in drive, withdrawn and no longer feel joy. Most suffer from anxiety and the desire to take their own life. Approximately one out of every five people in Germany suffers from depression in the course of his/her life - sometimes resulting in suicide. People with depression are frequently treated with psychotherapy and medication.

5 Apr 2012

Electroconvulsive therapy and how it works in severe depression: Study

Electroconvulsive therapy, or ECT, has been used in severely and persistently depressed patients from their disabling mood state for more than seven decades. Researchers have searched for the reason why this technique sometimes works in these patients.

20 Mar 2012

Transcranial magnetic stimulation that treats depression gains momentum

A new magnetic therapy that treats major depression "is rapidly gaining momentum," said Dr. Murali Rao of Loyola University Medical Center, one of the first Chicago-area centers to offer the treatment.

3 Feb 2012

Deep brain stimulation benefits highly treatment resistant patients with major depressive disorder

Results from the first multi-center pilot study of deep brain stimulation (DBS) for major depressive disorder were published online today by the Journal of Neurosurgery. The study, conducted at three research facilities in Canada, was designed to replicate and build upon an earlier study by Dr. Andres Lozano and Dr. Helen Mayberg which was published in the journal Neuron in 2005.

18 Nov 2011

Scientists discover that DNA modifications in brain cells change due to stimulated brain activity

Johns Hopkins scientists investigating chemical modifications across the genomes of adult mice have discovered that DNA modifications in non-dividing brain cells, thought to be inherently stable, instead underwent large-scale dynamic changes as a result of stimulated brain activity.

1 Oct 2011