Clinical Neuroscience of ECT (CNECT)

Out on PubMed, from an author in Pennsylvania, is this article: Pendulums in medical practice. Kant ME. Med Leg J. 2025 Mar 27:258172241304558. doi: 10.1177/00258172241304558. Online ahead of print. PMID:  40145410 The abstract is copied below: Medicine is taught as a science, but in reality, as with other areas that undergo much public scrutiny, it is often more of an art than a science. Particularly when dealing with controversial areas, physicians often attempt to employ the "standard of care" as a guide to practising medicine, and to protect themselves. However, the standard of care itself is often a reactive and temporary construct. A number of practices serve as good examples of accepted patient care that has swung completely from one extreme to another. The history of opiate prescribing in this country exemplifies a complete swing in practice fundamentals among US physicians, where opiates have been repeatedly embraced, and then vilified. Numerous other practices demon...

Out on PubMed, from authors in Spain, is this paper: Using   Electroconvulsive   Therapy (ECT) in emergency clinical situations against patient's autonomy: A case study analysis. Payán Ellacuria E, Astobiza AM. Bioethics. 2025 Mar 24. doi: 10.1111/bioe.13413. Online ahead of print. PMID:  40123549 The abstract is copied below: In this paper, we present a comprehensive case study analysis of a specific legal order issued by the Court of First Instance Number 6 of Santiago de Compostela on March 21, 2023. The focal point of the case study is the utilization of Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT), a specific neurotechnology, in an emergency clinical situation. The objective of this article is to examine the legal and bioethical dimensions surrounding the use of ECT, shedding light on the ethical implications and decision-making processes involved in such cases. The analysis delves into the legal aspects of the case, considering relevant laws and regulations governing the use of...

 Out on PubMed, from authors in Canada, in JECT, is this review: Implementing  Electroconvulsive  Therapy for Patients Experiencing Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia: A Systematic Review. Nidumolu A, Kapustin D, Benzouak T, Rao S, Hassan S, Amanullah S. J ECT. 2025 Mar 17. doi: 10.1097/YCT.0000000000001125. Online ahead of print. PMID:  40094391 The abstract is copied below: Objectives: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has long been used to treat behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD). However, there are no guidelines for the use of ECT in this population. Contributing to efforts addressing this gap in the literature, this qualitative systematic review examines areas of consensus and disagreement in currently published protocols for the use of ECT in BPSD. Methods: MEDLINE and PsychInfo were searched for primary and secondary literature meeting the aim of this review. All articles were screened, full-text reviewed, and extracted in d...

 This from Medscape on March 21, 2025 The link is here: https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.medscape.com%2Fviewarticle%2Fmanaging-mental-illness-pregnancy-and-postpartum-what-know-2025a10006os&data=05%7C02%7C%7C731ec011327343c227b208dd68b224a4%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C638781836499111114%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=PROldWCwoODo73NkHb8lgw3FZclxGa5RccXDSzokK0c%3D&reserved=0 The ECT part is here: The "current literature" links to this article: I blog about this because the article actually mentions ECT. It is mostly about drugs, but kudos to the author for not forgetting about ECT, as so many do.

 Out on PubMed, in JECT, from Italian and German authors, is this paper: "His Discovery Has Revolutionized Psychiatry; It Has Opened Vast Horizons": Ugo Cerletti, a Missing Nobel Prize Laureate? Sirgiovanni E, Hansson N. J ECT. 2025 Mar 19. doi: 10.1097/YCT.0000000000001136. Online ahead of print. PMID:  40105334 The abstract is copied below: Drawing on original sources from Italian and Swedish archives, this article provides novel insights into the life of Ugo Cerletti (1877-1963). Cerletti, the Italian neuropsychiatrist and originator (with his assistant Lucio Bini) of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in the late 1930s, strongly coveted the Nobel Prize in the 1950s and 1960s. He would never receive it, despite maintaining close correspondence with his nominators and informants in Sweden. This article critically discusses potential reasons for the rejection of his candidacy, including the tensions between Cerletti and Bini and the general climate of suspicion against ECT tha...

Out on PubMed, from authors in Germany, is this paper: [Access to  electroconvulsive   therapy for people lacking decision making capacity and as nonvoluntary treatment : Expert consensus and statement of the German Association for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics (DGPPN)]. Zilles-Wegner D, Gather J, Hasan A, Müller JL, Pollmächer T, Simon A, Steinert T, Sartorius A. Nervenarzt. 2025 Mar 5. doi: 10.1007/s00115-025-01816-8. Online ahead of print. PMID:  40042615   Review.   German The abstract is copied below: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a clinically well-established, evidence-based procedure for the treatment of particularly severe or treatment-resistant psychiatric and neuropsychiatric disorders. A considerable number of patients who require ECT are unable to provide informed consent due to their medical condition. Both international and national studies show that restrictive laws and legal rulings can hinder or even prevent the use of ECT in...