Classics in ECT: Early Neuropsych Testing in the American Journal of Psychiatry, 1948

 "Classics in ECT" brings you this paper from 1948, in the American Journal of Psychiatry:

The effect of electric shock on mental efficiency.

HUSTON PE, STROTHER CR.Am J Psychiatry. 1948 May;104(11):707-12. doi: 10.1176/ajp.104.11.707.PMID: 18864979 


The full paper is here.
And from the text:


Here's a very early report of neuropsychological testing in ECT. The ECT was sine wave, bilateral and unmodified, yet the results showed no evidence of significant long-term cognitive impairment. While the assessment instruments and methods may not be up to modern standards, it is useful to be aware of this 75-year old study. Perhaps neuropsychologist blog followers will want to comment about some of the specifics of the testing and instruments used...
The first author, PE Huston, has 33 PubMed citations, from 1946-1973, mostly about schizophrenia, depression and ECT.




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