
Research view
Title: | A study of cofactors implicated in response to electroconvulsive therapy in patients with psychotic disorders |
Author: | Mohamed A. AbdelHameed, Maha A. Hassan, Mohamed A. Foly and Abd El-Raouf O. Abd El-Bakey |
Abstract: |
Background
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is an effective treatment for psychotic disorders with
relatively few side effects and rapid onset of action. Factors that may predict patients’
responses to ECT need to be explored.
Objective
The aim of the study was to investigate the responses of an inpatient group of
psychotic (schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder) patients to ECT administration
and the factors favoring better response.
Participants and methods
Eighty patients with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder indicated to receive
ECT were selected from among the inpatients of El-Minia Psychiatry Hospital.
Psychiatric examination by completion of a psychiatric sheet, full medical examination,
and necessary investigations for anesthesia fitness were conducted for all patients.
The Brief Psychiatry Rating Scale was used to assess patients’ symptoms before
initiation of ECT, after undergoing three sessions, and after termination of the ECT
course (6–8 sessions).
Results
Response to ECT was similar among different age groups in both male and female
patients. Patients’ responses to treatment differed according to their specific diagnosis
and according to the duration of the current episode or exacerbation of psychotic
illness before ECT administration.
Conclusion
Age and gender of patients with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder do not play
a role in determining their response to treatment with ECT. Patients’ specific diagnoses
and the duration of the current episode or exacerbation of psychotic illness before ECT
administration are important factors in determining the response of psychotic patients
to ECT.
Keywords:
duration of current episode of illness, electroconvulsive therapy, psychotic disorders,
schizoaffective disorder, schizophrenia
|
Journal: | Egyptian Journal of Psychiatry 2013, 34:134–141 |
Text: | |
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