Ducharme Simon, Murray Evan D, Seiner Stephen J, Tayeb Haythum, Legesse Benafew, Price Bruce H
From the McGill University Health Centre and Montreal Neurological Institute, Dept. of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, Canada (SD); McLean Hospital, Dept. of Neurology, Belmont MA (SD, EDM, BHP);Massachusetts General Hospital, Dept. of Neurology, Boston MA (SD, BHP); McLean Hospital, Dept. of Psychiatry, Belmont MA (SJS, BL); and King Abdulaziz University, Dept. of Neurology, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (HT).
J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2015 Fall;27(4):311-21. doi: 10.1176/appi.neuropsych.14080195. Epub 2015 Feb 6.
Pre-ECT neurology consultations are often requested to determine the relative risk of the procedure in patients with neurological comorbidities, but there is limited data to guide clinicians. The authors performed a retrospective chart review of all consecutive inpatients at McLean Hospital who underwent a pre-ECT neurological evaluation between January 2012 and June 2014 (N=68). ECT was safe and effective in patients with a wide variety of neurological diseases. Only one minor event was related to a neurological comorbidity, and there were no serious neurological complications. Based on the latest evidence, the authors provide guidance on the pre-ECT evaluation with respect to neurologic status.