ECT: Examining a controversial therapy in the armamentarium of psychiatry

Abstract

Historically, treatments for severe psychoses and affective disorders were nonexistent, and patients with mental disorders were transferred to asylums for public safety. This deficiency in treatment inspired the inception of somatic therapies, of which electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was the most efficacious. This paper will outline the birth of ECT, the controversies leading to its decline, and the subsequent resurgence back into practice.