Psychiatric Propaganda:
Only 1 in 10,000 people die as a result
of shock treatment.
The Truth:
Recent reports indicates the death rate may
be
closer to 1 in 200!1.
Psychiatric Propaganda:
Shock therapy is effective in preventing
suicide.
The Truth:
A 1986 study involving 1,494 patients
found
no difference in suicide rates between
shocked
and non-shocked depressed patients. "A
close
examination of the literature does not support
the commonly held belief that ECT exerts
long-range
protective effects against suicide.''2.
Psychiatric Propaganda:
ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) does not cause
brain damage.
The Truth:
Many noted experts in the fields of Psychiatry
and neurology have reported brain damage as
a
result of shock therapy. Some early literature
on the
subject indicated brain damage was the source
of the improvement. 3.
Psychiatric Propaganda:
Shock treatment is effective in eradicating
depression.
The Truth:
A 1984 study showed no difference between shock
and non-shock patients after 4 weeks. A
six month
follow up also showed no
difference.
A 1978 study showed no difference at 12 and 26
weeks
between patients who received shock compared to
those
who received "fake" shock.4.
Psychiatric Propaganda:
Modern shock treatment (ECT) is very safe.
The Truth:
A study of death rates
showed 23%-45% higher death rate for elderly
people at one, two and three years after
shock treatment compared to a control group of
similarly aged people that received non-shock
psychiatric treatment.5.
Psychiatric Propaganda:
People receiving shock treatment do not suffer
long term damage to their memory. Only 1 in 200
people have trouble with memory after
shock
treatment.
The Truth:
A 1983 study shows that three years after shock
treatment that 50% of patients that received
bi-lateral (temple to temple) electric shock
complained of poor memory. In fact 1 in 200
figure
was "impressionistic" -- they made it
up!6.
1.
Dennis Cauchon, Patients often aren't informed of full danger, USA Today,
http://web.usatoday.com/life/health/lhs195.htm
Kroessler D., Fogel B. Electroconvulsive Therapy for Major Depression in the Oldest
Old. The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 1993; 1: 30-37
SANDRA G. BOODMAN, SHOCK THERAPY... IT'S BACK, The Washington Post, Tuesday,
September 24 1996, Page Z14
2.
SANDRA G. BOODMAN, SHOCK THERAPY... IT'S BACK, The Washington Post, Tuesday,
September 24 1996, Page Z14
Black D., Winokur G., et al. Does Treatment Influence Mortality in
Depressives? Annals of Clinical Psychiatry 1989; 1: 165-173
Dennis Cauchon, Stunningly quick results often fade just as fast, USA Today,
http://web.usatoday.com/life/health/lhs188.htm
3.
Weisberg L., Elliott, D., Mielke, D. Intracerebral hemorrhage following electroconvulsive
therapy. Neurology Nov. 1991; v41,n11 :1849.
Sterling P. Brain Damage and Memory Loss from ECT, Testimony Prepared for the Standing
Committee on Mental Health of the Assembly of the State of New York, 1978.
Madow L. Brain Changes in Electroshock Therapy. The American Journal of Psychiatry 1956;
113:337-347
Alpers B. The Brain Changes in Electrically Induced Convulsions in the Human. Journal of
Neuropathology and Experimental Neurology 1942; 1:173-180
Calloway S.P., Levy R., et al. ECT and Cerebral Atrophy A Computed Tomographic Study. Acta
Psychiatra Scandinavia 1981; 64:442-445
Friedberg J. Shock Treatment, Brain Damage, and Memory Loss: A Neurological Perspective.
The American Journal of Psychiatry 1977; 134:1010-1013.
Breggin P. Neuropathology and Cognitive Dysfunction From ECT. Psychopharmacology Bulletin
1986; 22:476-479
Breggin P. Toxic Psychiatry, (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1991), Chapter 9, Shock
Treatment is Not Good for Your Brain
Ferraro A., Roizin L. Cerebral Morphologic Changes in Monkeys Subjected to a Large Number
of Electrically Induced Convulsions (32-100). The American Journal of Psychiatry 1949;
106:278-284
Levy N., Serota H.M., Grinker R. Disturbances in Brain Function Following Convulsive Shock
Therapy. Archives of Neurology and Psychiatry 1942; 47:1009-1029
Afield, W. Testimony of Dr. Walter Afield for the Texas House of Representatives Public
Health Committee, in Support of House Bill 2452. April 18, 1995.
Bielski V. Electroshock’s Quiet Comeback. The San Francisco Bay Guardian, April 18,
1990, p.17
Farber S. Madness, Heresy, and the Rumor of Angels, (Chicago: Open Court, 1993), Chapter
14, From Victim to Revolutionary: An Interview with Leonard Frank
Templar D., Hartlage L., Cannon W., Preventable Brain Damage: Brain Vulnerability and
Brain Health, (New York: Springer Publishing Company, 1992). Chapter 8, ECT and Permanent
Brain Damage
4.
Dennis Cauchon, Stunningly quick results often fade just as fast, USA Today,
http://web.usatoday.com/life/health/lhs188.htm
Lambourn J., Gill D. A Controlled Comparison of Simulated and Real ECT.
British Journal of Psychiatry 1978; 133:514-519
5.
Kroessler D., Fogel B. Electroconvulsive Therapy for Major Depression in the Oldest
Old. The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry 1993; 1: 30-37
Dennis Cauchon, Patients often aren't informed of full danger, USA Today,
http://web.usatoday.com/life/health/lhs195.htm
6.
SANDRA G. BOODMAN, SHOCK THERAPY... IT'S BACK, The Washington Post, Tuesday,
September 24 1996, Page Z14
Cameron D., Electroshock Treatment: 1000 Cases of Permanent Memory Loss (Unpublished
Manuscript). 1994
Friedberg J., Shock Treatment is not Good for Your Brain (San Francisco: Glide
Publications, 1976).
Squire L., Slater P. Electroconvulsive Therapy and Complaints of Memory Dysfunction: A
Prospective Three-Year Follow-up Study. British Journal of Psychiatry 1983; 142: 1-8
Janis I., Psychological Effects of Electric Convulsive Treatments (I. Post-Treatment
Amnesia). The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 1950; 111:359-380, and Psychological
Effects of Electric Convulsive Treatments (II. Changes in Word Association Reactions) The
Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 1950; 111:383-397, and The Effects of
Electroconvulsive Treatments on Memory Efficiency. The Journal of Abnormal and Social
Psychology 1951; 46:501-511, and Memory Loss Following Electric Convulsive Treatments.
Journal of Personality 1948; 17:29-32
Mattes J., Pettinati H. Et al., A Placebo-Controlled Evaluation of Vasopressin for
ECT-Induced Memory Impairment. Biological Psychiatry 1990; 27:289-303 see Alan W. Scheflin
and Edward M. Opton, Jr., The Mind Manipulators, (New York: Paddington Press, 1978)
CIA document dated December 3, 1951, related to Project Artichoke, released under the
Freedom of Information Act
