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- Brus, Ole, 1982-
(author)
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Prognostic factors of electroconvulsive therapy for depression
- 2022
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Depression is a severe disorder that can be difficult to treat. One approach to treating depression is electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), whereby electricity is administered through electrodes fastened to the patient’s head. This procedure is effective, however not all patients respond. Moreover, ECT can induce side effects, such as memory problems. In addition, even after achieving remission patients are likely to relapse at a later date. Thus, it is important to optimize ECT in terms of treatment effectiveness while minimizing its side effects. A further crucial issue is to prevent relapses by developing effective follow-up treatments. This thesis encapsulates four studies with the following goals: 1) to identify which factors that are associated with the worsening of subjective memory, 2) to identify factors that are associated with remission, 3) to quantify the effect of lithium on relapse after ECT for unipolar depression, 4) to investigate whether the difference in time to relapse between continuation ECT (C-ECT) with medication and medication alone during the first year of treatment changes over 10 years following the end of C-ECT treatment in patients with depression.The studies were performed using the Swedish national register data. The first two studies used the outcomes of subjective memory worsening and remission respectively. The third and fourth studies used time to relapse as the outcome.Several factors were associated with the outcomes: in the first, second, and third studies, it was found that older patients were associated with a positive outcome. In both the second and fourth studies, psychotic depression and not having anxiety disorder were associated with positive outcomes. The third study showed that patients who used lithium were less likely to relapse: the hazard ratio with 95% confidence interval among lithium users compared to non-lithium users was 0.84 (0.75–0.93). The fourth study indicated that the beneficial effect of C-ECT and medication compared with medication alone during the first year post-ECT was maintained for several years.In conclusion, it is important to identify factors that are associated with beneficial treatment, and the studies conducted for this thesis contribute to such knowledge.
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| 2. |
- Nordenskjöld, Axel, 1977-
(author)
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Electroconvulsive therapy for depression
- 2013
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Aim: The overarching aims of the thesis were to identify clinical characteristics that predict the outcomes of depressed patients treated inclinical practice by ECT, and to elucidate the effectiveness of continuation ECT at preventing relapses and recurrences.Methods: The studies included a retrospective chart review, three studies based on a quality register for ECT, and a randomized controlled trial(RCT) examining the effectiveness of continued ECT.Results: The overall response rate to ECT was 80%. Patients with psychotic depression (89%), older patients (84%), and inpatients (83%) had the highest response rates. Patients with personality disorders (66%) and outpatients (66%) had the lowest response rates. With regard to patients on sick leave, 59%, 71% and 88% of patients regained occupational functioning 6, 12 and 24 months after ECT, respectively. The rate of hospitalisation after ECT was high, with rates of 25%, 34%and 44% 6, 12 and 24 months after ECT, respectively. The relapse rate was higher in patients that were taking benzodiazepines and lower in patients that were taking lithium.The relapse rate was significantly lower in patients treated with continued ECT in combination with pharmacotherapy (32%) than in those treated with pharmacotherapy alone (61%). This difference was particularly pronounced in medication-resistant patients (31% vs. 85%)Conclusions: The short-term response rate to ECT is relatively high in all patient subgroups, and is particularly high in older patients, inpatients and patients with severe depression. Patients often regain occupational functioning after ECT; however, this takes a considerably longer time than that required for symptom relief. Nevertheless, the relapse and recurrence rates of patients are high in the years after ECT. Continuation ECT and lithium treatment can be combined with antidepressants to reduce the risk of relapse and recurrence. Further RCTs are required to define the indications for continuation ECT and lithium treatment.
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| 3. |
- Popiolek, Katarzyna, 1981-
(author)
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Electroconvulsive therapy for bipolar disorder
- 2024
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Aims This thesis aimed to investigate 1. the effectiveness of electroconvulsivetherapy (ECT) in bipolar depression and mania in real-life settings; 2. the prognostic factors of response to ECT; 3. readmission ratesand risk factors after the acute phase of bipolar disorder; and 4. the association between ECT and readmission rate in mania.Methods This thesis includes four nationwide register studies. Data came from several national registers linked by personal identity numbers.Results Response was achieved in 80.2% of ECT-treated patients with bipolardepression and 84.4% of ECT-treated patients with mania. Younger age was associated with a lower response rate to ECT in depressive episodes. Patients aged 16–30 years had a lower chance of responding than patients aged 31–40 years, 61–70, and 71–80 years. Response to ECT in mania was associated with the severity of symptoms. Patients who were markedly ill, severely ill, and among the most extremely ill had a higher chance of responding than patients with mild to moderate illness. Relapse within 3, 6, and 12 months after bipolar depression was reached by 29%, 41%, and 52% of patients, respectively. After manic episodes, 30%, 41%, and 55% of patients were readmitted within 3, 6, and 12 months, respectively. Treatment with ECT was not associated with a longer time to readmission after a manic episode than other treatments.Conclusions Over 80% of patients with bipolar depression and mania responded to ECT. In depressive episodes, patients at lower ages had a lower chance of achieving response after ECT, and in mania, patients with more severe symptoms had a higher chance of responding to ECT. The readmission rate after both manic and depressive episodes was high. There was no significant difference between time to readmission in patients treated with and without ECT during index admission for mania.
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