electroconvulsive therapy

[ ih-lek-troh-kuhn-vuhl-siv, ih-lek- ]

noun

, Psychiatry.

1. a treatment for serious mental illnesses, as severe depressive disorders, involving the application to the head of electric current in order to induce a seizure: usually administered after sedatives and muscle relaxants. : ECT

electroconvulsive therapy

/ ɪˌlɛktrəʊkənˈvʌlsɪv /

noun

1. med the treatment of certain psychotic conditions by passing an electric current through the brain to induce coma or convulsions ECT Also calledelectroshock therapy See also shock therapy

electroconvulsive therapy

/ ĭ-lĕk′trō-kən-vŭl′sĭv /

1. Administration of electric current to the brain through electrodes placed on the head, usually near the temples, in order to induce unconsciousness and brief seizures. It is used in the treatment of certain psychiatric disorders, especially severe depression.

Word History and Origins

Origin of electroconvulsive therapy¹

First recorded in 1945–50; electro- + convulsive

Example Sentences

Nothing she had tried to treat it, including electroconvulsive therapy, had helped.

From MIT Technology Review

So, we said, “All right, we’re gonna give it not once, but we’re gonna give it on a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule, just like we’d give electroconvulsive therapy for severe depression, for a couple of weeks and see how they do.”

From Freakonomics

One option for unresolved depression is electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).

From The Daily Beast