Overview
Introduction of brief-pulse ECT in Japan and its consequences
2012 Volume 24 Issue 2 Pages 106-109
Details
2012 Volume 24 Issue 2 Pages 106-109
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was first developed in Italy in 1938 and has been widely used, with some modification of its methods, for the treatment of refractory mental disorders. Although ECT was introduced in Japan as early as 1939, its safety has not been improved for a long time. Brief-pulse ECT was approved in 2002 under conditions in which well-trained psychiatrists should administer ECT and in which modified ECT would be mandatory. As a consequence, the image of ECT has been improved, and more and more studies on ECT have been published in international journals. However, not a few unmodified ECT procedures are still performed in Japan. We have to improve safety and efficacy of ECT further.
