ArticleEuropean archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience2024
The myth of brain damage: no change of neurofilament light chain during transient cognitive side-effects of ECT.
Article in European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.
- ECT is not an invasive therapy.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2026Article
- Blood biomarkers of neuronal injury and astrocytic reactivity in electroconvulsive therapy.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Article
- Investigating the impact of electroconvulsive therapy on brain networks and sleep: an observational study protocol.BMJ open · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is an effective, safe, and mostly well-tolerated treatment for patients with severe or difficult to treat depression or psychotic disorders. However, a relevant number of patients experience subjective and/or objective cognitive side-effects. The mechanism of these transient deficits is not yet clear. Thus, our study prospectively investigated neurofilament light chain (NfL) concentrations as a highly sensitive biomarker for neuroaxonal damage along with cognitive performance during a course of ECT. Serum NfL concentrations from 15 patients with major depressive disorder receiving ECT were analyzed (1) 24 h before the first ECT, (2) 24 h and (3) 7 days after the last ECT (45 measurements in total). Neuropsychological testing including memory, executive functions and attention was performed at each time-point. NfL concentrations did not change between the three time-points, while a temporary cognitive impairment was found. Even in the subset of patients with the strongest impairment, NfL concentrations remained unchanged. Neuropsychological testing revealed the common pattern of transient cognitive side-effects with reduced performance 24 h post-ECT (global cognition score: p < 0.001; memory: p = 0.043; executive functions: p = 0.002) and return to baseline after 7 days (all p < 0.001). Our study adds to the evidence that neither ECT per se nor the transient cognitive side-effects seem to be associated with an increase of NfL as a marker of neuroaxonal damage. In contrast, we discuss cognitive side effects to be potentially interpreted as a byproduct of ECT's neuroplastic effects.
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