ArticleActa psychiatrica Scandinavica2021
Effectiveness of maintenance electroconvulsive therapy-Evidence from modifications due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Article in Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed, 22 citations in OpenAlex.
- Little information, great impact? A clinical tool for the prediction of electroconvulsive therapy effectiveness in depression.BJPsych open · 2026Article
- Review
- [Mental health and mental healthcare as elements of pandemic and crisis preparedness].Der Nervenarzt · 2025Review
- [Electroconvulsive therapy: what should be done when the needs exceed the treatment capacities?-A medical ethics guidance].Der Nervenarzt · 2024Article
- Effects of lockdowns on neurobiological and psychometric parameters in unipolar depression during the COVID-19 pandemic.Translational psychiatry · 2024Article
- Medium-term and peri-lockdown course of psychosocial burden during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal study on patients with pre-existing mental disorders.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2022Article
- [High relapse rate after pandemic-related discontinuation of maintenance treatment with electroconvulsive therapy. ECT is not an elective therapy].Der Nervenarzt · 2022Article
- An Online Survey About Electroconvulsive Therapy in Japan During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Comparison of Early and Recent Stages.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2022Article
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4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
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No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveContinuation and maintenance ECT (c-/m-ECT) are effective in the prevention of relapse and recurrence of both affective and psychotic disorders. However, data are scarce concerning the trajectories of severe mental disorders after the end of c-/m-ECT. This prospective study investigates the clinical outcome of patients with versus without modifications of their c-/m-ECT schedules.
methodsIn the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, ECT capacities were restricted at many clinics in early 2020. All patients receiving c-/m-ECT in March and April 2020 at our department (n = 53, unipolar depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia) were followed up for six months to investigate the impact of treatment modifications imposed by the pandemic. Based on individual decisions, c-/m-ECT was either (a) continued without modification, (b) continued with reduced frequency, or (c) discontinued.
resultsBoth reduced frequency and discontinuation of c-/m-ECT were associated with significant clinical deterioration as measured by CGI-I (Clinical Global Impression Scale - Global Improvement) during the six-month follow-up when compared to the subgroup of patients without any treatment modification (p = 0.005, p = 0.011). Furthermore, patients with discontinued or reduced c-/m-ECT showed significantly higher rates of rehospitalizations (p = 0.028) and new acute courses of ECT (p = 0.018).
conclusionDespite the limitations of a heterogeneous and relatively small sample, our study strongly corroborates the effectiveness of c-/m-ECT in a real-world population. Especially, patients with shorter time since index ECT seem to be at high risk for severe clinical deterioration in the case of treatment discontinuation or reduction.
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