DOES ECT CAUSE BRAIN DAMAGE?
The straightforward answer is NO.
Brain damage can be of two types:
- Shrinkage of the brain or loss of particular groups of cells.
- There are many studies using modern brain scans which have shown that ECT does not cause such damage.
- Impairment of function
- This might not show up on brain scans.
- It might be detected by tests of memory, concentration or ability to plan.
- Most studies show that these abilities improve in patients who have had ECT. This is because ECT reverses depression not because of a direct positive effect on brain function.
- This emphasises that depression itself has profound effects on memory, concentration and other mental tasks.
Could there be a small number of people who do have permanent memory changes after ECT?
- there are certainly patients who have lost memories from their past which have not returned even after many years.
- Detecting these gaps in individual memories has proved very difficult in large research studies.
- Even in this very small number of patients the ability to learn new facts remains intact.
