Who Is a Candidate for ECT?
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)
Ect is an acute treatment which is given to the patient when his life is at risk . But there are certain aspects that you need to know about it.
You need to have a check of the following things to the patient:
1. whether he has a previous ECT treatment.
2. is he in a state that he is not allowed to take the given drugs , for example , a pregnant lady in her last stages.
3. whether he is having a great level of depression so that he can shorten his life.
4. some pressure problems . sometimes there can be intense pressure on the skull of the mind that giving such dosage can risk his life.
5. has the previous ECT therapy failed on him.
6. is he diabetic.
7. any other thing or therapy that the patient has experienced and has failed in it . this must be known because doing mare than one therapy on a single patient can cause damage to him . also , the patient should clearly disclose this to the concerned doctor.
About the therapy :
Treatment is generally scheduled for early morning. The night before, the patient’s hair is thoroughly washed and no creamy hair products or skin lotions can be applied afterward. The patient is not allowed to eat or drink after midnight to decrease risk during anesthesia.
The patients teeth are broken if they are week because the clenching can cause them a damage . also no oily product is allowed to be applied on skin.
After the therapy, the patient comes in normal state after 1 hour or so . in some cases , which happens very rare , the patient can even vomit . but , after an hour , the patient can be observed for change if any found.
Risk involved :
As compared to earlier days , the ect therapy is much more safer now because of the good machines and their improved versions being used . as anesthesia is used , there are small chances of death . also , it causes irregular heart rates and sometimes a little memory loss can also occur . the body can go under severe pain , the muscles are stretched , a gentle lift in the top of mind can be experienced . there can be a sort of acne and the patient may have loss of appetite in some cases also . but all this things mention here don’t happen to everyone !! if care is taken.
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