This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Related article  • Similar articles in JAMA

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

To the Editor: Dr Sackeim and colleagues¹ compared relapse rates after electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) among patients who received maintenance antidepressant therapy vs placebo. However, the very low baseline remission rate (55%) reported for ECT is highly atypical.

The authors briefly note that 90% of the patients entering the continuation phase initially received ECT, a method known for its low efficacy, with moderate-dose right unilateral ECT, administered at a dose of 150% above seizure threshold. However, this method is not very effective. In a prospective, randomized, double-blind clinical study reported less than a year ago, Sackeim et al² were able to obtain only a 30% remission rate with right unilateral ECT administered at 150% above threshold, a remission rate no better than that typically obtained with placebo in controlled trials of antidepressant drugs. In this prior study,² patients who did not show substantial improvement with 150% above the threshold for right . . . [Full Text of this Article]

RELATED ARTICLE

Continuation Pharmacotherapy in the Prevention of Relapse Following Electroconvulsive Therapy: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Harold A. Sackeim, Roger F. Haskett, Benoit H. Mulsant, Michael E. Thase, J. John Mann, Helen M. Pettinati, Robert M. Greenberg, Raymond R. Crowe, Thomas B. Cooper, and Joan Prudic
JAMA. 2001;285(10):1299-1307.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT