Posted by chiron on April 22, 2007, at 11:49:38
In reply to Re: Is it safe to have ECT with antidepressants? » Sebastian, posted by linkadge on April 20, 2007, at 14:32:41
I wouldn't consider ECT "frying" your brain. For me it's more like "re-setting."
Some positive experiences & studies (although there are some that do not have a positive experience):
1. Her depression and (curiously) her thyroid hyperfunction responded to electroconvulsive therapy.
2. Sherwin P. Nuland, M.D: After the fourth ECT, I was noticeably less depressed. My appetite returned, as did my ability to sleep. After eight treatments, my mood was fully restored. I experienced no confusion, memory loss, headache, or any other symptom sometimes attributed to ECT.
3. PubMed - Changes in plasma amino acids after electroconvulsive therapy of depressed patients
Altogether 23 plasma amino acids were analyzed before and at 2, 6, 24 and 48 h after ECT. The levels of glutamate and aspartate increased at 6 h after ECT compared with the baseline. Also the levels of total tryptophan increased 2-24 h after ECT. There were also elevations in other amino acids at 6 and 24 h. The levels of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) decreased at 2 h. In this study the acute effects of single ECT were associated with changes in the levels of glutamate, aspartate, GABA, tryptophan and some other amino acids. The preliminary data suggest that the therapeutic effects of ECT in depression may be due to mechanisms involving these amino acid transmitters.
poster:chiron
thread:750729
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20070419/msgs/752389.html