Abstract

Objective: The frequency of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) application rates have been reported between 9% and 16.4% in Turkey. These results are higher than in the United States, European countries and some Asia-Pacific countries. These rates do not reflect the actual prevalence of ECT in the general psychiatric population due to nonexistence of a nationwide registry. In this study, we aimed to evaluate inpatients who underwent ECT at the clinic of a university hospital comprehensively. Methods: The patients who were hospitalized and treated with ECT in the Department of Psychiatry of Gulhane Military Medical Academy between 2006 and 2011 were included in this study. The medical files of patients who were hospitalized and treated with ECT within this period were evaluated retrospectively. Results: Of the 176 patients treated with ECT, the most common diagnosis for the application was psychotic disorder and the second was unipolar depression. Average duration of seizures was 27.6±9.7 sec, the average number of ECT was 9.1±4.2 and these have not shown difference according to the diseases. Complication rates were between 3% and 11% and were found to be the highest at the depression group. ECT has provided significant improvements in both clinical as well as psychometric measurements at 90.9% of the patients' and in all diagnostic groups. Discussion: The rate of ECT was found to be 2.2% in a 5-year period. The results show that ECT is a safe and effective treatment. Prospective and similar studies in different populations should be useful.

Key words: electroconvulsive therapy, indication, depression, mania, schizophrenia

Article Language: Turkish English