Depressive Relapse After Discontinuation of Antidepressants: Not Just An ECT Concern

Recently, in the New England Journal of Medicine, was this study:






While this is not specifically an ECT article, it IS related. I blog about this to make the point that relapse of depression is not just an issue with ECT; it is also a major problem with antidepressants, either continued or discontinued. 

The critique that ECT is merely a "short-term" treatment is ridiculous. ECT treats the current episode of mood disorder or symptom complex of other diagnoses for which it is indicated.

Maintenance treatment is necessary because of the recurrent nature of the illness, not because of a shortcoming of ECT. To paraphrase a famous 1981 Lancet editorial, "It is not an ECT shortcoming that has caused the relapse, it is the illness that has done just that."

(The "Quick Take Video Summary" of this article in the NEJM is 1 minute, 45 seconds.)

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