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Article: What's new in electroconvulsive therapy? Research suggests modern "shock therapy" may be the best treatment for severely depressed patients who don't respond to drugs or psychotherapy.
- Article from:
- Mind, Mood & Memory
- Article date:
- February 1, 2006
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Belvoir Media Group, LLC. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)--one of the most effective short-term treatments in the battle against depression--has an image problem. After depictions of the technique in movies like "A Beautiful Mind" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," much of the public has the impression it's a primitive procedure more closely allied to torture than to healing.
But proponents of the treatment say it offers a viable option for severely depressed patients who don't respond to drug therapy or psychotherapy, and insist the side effects of modern techniques are minimal.
"It involves intentionally initiating a grand mal seizure under controlled circumstances by ...