Nov 17, 2022 06:00:00

In fact, 'electroshock therapy' is more effective for depression than ketamine

Research results have been reported that `` electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) '', which stimulates the head by applying electrodes, has a better effect on early recovery from depression than `` ketamine '', a drug with antidepressant action. I was.

Study: Electroshock Therapy More Successful for Depression than Ketamine - UConn Today

https://today.uconn.edu/2022/10/electroshock-therapy-more-successful-for-depression-than-ketamine/

According to the World Health Organization, depression is a common disease affecting about 5% of adults worldwide. Typical symptoms of depression are feelings of sadness, irritability, loss of enjoyment of previously enjoyable activities, and unexplained pain and fatigue, sometimes for weeks.

Many people diagnosed with depression are prescribed oral antidepressants along with psychotherapy. However, if the initially prescribed oral antidepressants do not work or if there is an imminent risk of self-harm, drugs such as ketamine or esketamine or ECT are also considered options.

Ketamine is commonly used in medicine as an injectable anesthetic, but is sometimes used as a fast-acting therapy to help people with depression.

Greg Rhee and his colleagues at the University of Connecticut, who conducted this research, analyzed six clinical trial studies around the world and compared ketamine and ECT to verify the therapeutic effects on depression. All trials found that ECT was more effective than ketamine in alleviating symptoms of severe depression.

In many cases, ketamine seems to have helped patients, but overall ECT had better results. In addition, the side effects of the two treatments are different: ECT is more likely to cause headaches, muscle pain, and memory loss, while ketamine is more likely to cause dissociative symptoms, dizziness, and double vision. .

“ECT is consistently more effective than ketamine in helping severely depressed patients,” Rhee said. Nevertheless, people are still skeptical of ECT, perhaps portrayed negatively in movies like One Flew Over the Cuckoo 's Nest and dramas like Stranger Things . We need to raise public awareness of ECT as an alternative to existing treatments.”