Knowledge and Attitudes of First- and Final-Year Medical Students about Electroconvulsive Therapy: The Impact of Media.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to evaluate medical students' knowledge about and attitudes towards electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and to assess the impact of information sources (including those within and outside the curriculum) on knowledge and attitudes by comparing first- and final-year medical students. METHODS: Two hundred and ninety-five first-year and one hundred forty-nine final-year medical students of the University of Leuven (KU Leuven) in Belgium responded to an anonymous self-administered survey which consisted of questions about sociodemographic background, self-perceived knowledge about medicine, psychiatry and ECT, interest in psychiatry, experience with psychiatric disorders, information sources of ECT, and knowledge about and attitudes towards ECT. RESULTS: Compared to first-year medical students, final-year students had better knowledge about and more positive attitudes towards ECT, partially explained by differences in information sources. Nevertheless, both student groups showed an average knowledge score below 50%. Whereas freshmen attributed their knowledge to movies or documentaries, senior students gained knowledge mainly at university courses, scientific journals, and attending live ECT sessions. A significant positive correlation was found between knowledge about and positive attitudes towards ECT. CONCLUSIONS: The knowledge of first- and final-year medical students remains limited, potentially due to limited instruction about ECT in medical courses. The use of media as an information source predicted negative attitudes towards ECT. Therefore, the stigma and misinformation provided in the media need to be addressed in the medical curriculum.

The Effect of Electroconvulsive Therapy on Positive Affect and Hedonism in Patients With Depression: A Prospective Study.

OBJECTIVES: The outcome of antidepressant treatments is generally assessed with standardized symptom scales such as the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology-Clinician Rating (QIDS-C). These scales, however, might not reflect patients' expectations for treatment, including a recovery of positive affect (PA) and hedonism. The Leuven Affect and Pleasure Scale (LAPS) was developed to better reflect patients' expectations for treatment. We used the LAPS to investigate changes in PA and hedonism alongside depressive symptoms during electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and over 12 weeks after treatment. METHODS: Fifty-three patients with a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, depressive episode, referred for ECT, were included in this prospective study. The LAPS and QIDS-C were administered before and 1 and 12 weeks after the ECT course. LAPS normative levels were obtained in 149 healthy controls. RESULTS: Pearson correlations revealed only moderate overlap of the QIDS-C with PA and hedonism. Piecewise linear mixed models indicated significant improvements in depressive symptoms (QIDS-C and LAPS negative affect), PA, and hedonism during ECT. In the 12 weeks after ECT treatment, negative affect and QIDS-C further improved, but PA and hedonism plateaued. Exploratory analyses indicated that only fully remitted patients (QIDS-C) attained normative levels on PA and hedonism at 12 weeks after ECT. CONCLUSIONS: Standardized symptom scales (QIDS-C) may incompletely reflect clinical change in ECT treatment for depression. Although ECT improved depressive symptoms, PA, and hedonism in patients with depression, only fully remitted patients attained normative levels of PA and hedonism, due to plateaus in improvement. These plateaus were not observed for depressive symptoms, which further improved after ECT discontinuation.

Relapse after abrupt discontinuation of maintenance electroconvulsive therapy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE: Maintenance electroconvulsive therapy (M-ECT) is considered an effective relapse prevention strategy in severe mood and psychotic disorders. How long M-ECT should be continued, and what the outcome is after its discontinuation has not been adequately studied. In our tertiary psychiatric hospital, M-ECT treatments were suspended at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We aimed to determine the 6-month relapse rate and time to relapse after abrupt discontinuation of M-ECT and to assess the impact of patient and treatment characteristics on the risk of relapse. METHODS: Eighty-one patients whose M-ECT was discontinued abruptly were followed up prospectively for 6 months, or until relapse (i.e., hospital admission, restart of ECT, change of pharmacotherapy, or suicide (attempt)). We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards models to assess the impact of patient and treatment characteristics on the risk of relapse. RESULTS: Thirty-six patients (44.44%) relapsed within 6 months following abrupt discontinuation of M-ECT. A greater number of previous acute ECT courses, a diagnosis of psychotic disorder (compared with major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder), and a shorter interval between M-ECT treatments at the time of discontinuation were significantly associated with increased risk of relapse. CONCLUSION: Almost half of the patients relapsed, similar to the relapse rate after a successful acute course of ECT. Patients with a shorter interval between M-ECT treatments at the time of discontinuation seem to be at increased risk, as well as patients with a diagnosis of psychotic disorder, compared to patients with mood disorders.