Electroconvulsive and Neuromodulation Therapies

Electroconvlusive therapy (ECT) is a psychiatric treatment involving the induction of a seizure through the transmission of electricity into the brain. In the early eighties, ECT was replaced by far more effective psychopharmacologic medications as a primary treatment modality. Much of the decline in use of ECT at that time was also ascribable to the number of complications associated with the technique. Because of recent refinements and a far better understanding of the scientific mechanisms underpinning ECT, this treatment modality has lately seen a resurgence in use in clinical practice. This book is the new definitive reference on electroconvulsive and neuromodulation therapy. It comprehensively covers both the scientific basis and clinical practice of ECT, as well as providing readers with administrative perspectives for the training and management of this modality in clinical practice. The newer forms of non-convulsive electrical and magnetic brain stimulation therapy are also covered in detail and presented as a separate section.

Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 03/02/2009
Pages: 648
Weight: 3.7lbs
Size: 9.80h x 7.00w x 1.50d
ISBN: 9780521883887

About the Author
Swartz, Conrad M.: - Dr Conrad Swartz is a board-certified psychiatrist, elected fellow and past president of the Association for Convulsive Therapy, and two-time recipient of the Clinical Research Award from the American Academy of Clinical Psychiatrists for studies involving ECT. His extensive scholarly publications about electroconvulsive therapy and clinical pharmacology reflect his combining doctoral skills in engineering with medical psychiatry to find new practical solutions to clinical problems. He has directed ECT programs at several medical schools as well as research, education, and clinical programs. He is a co-author of the recently published title Psychotic Depression (Cambridge University Press, 2007)