electroshock therapy

/ ɪˈlɛktrəʊˌʃɒk /

noun

1. another name for electroconvulsive therapy

electroshock therapy

1. The passing of an electric current (see also current ) through the brain to induce a brief seizure. This therapy is still used to treat major depression when other methods, such as drugs, are ineffective or not well tolerated by the recipient.

Notes

Although this treatment has been controversial, the careful use of anesthetics and muscle relaxers in combination with a more controlled use of a lower electric current has reduced the problems that were associated with it in the past.

Example Sentences

Hermes skillfully twines together the many strands of Reed’s singular life — a benumbing suburban childhood, electroshock therapy, heroin addiction and artistic flowering at the feet of Schwartz and the Beats.

From Los Angeles Times

That private weariness caused him to recoil for long periods after his most outrageous escapades would get him sent to hospitals for electroshock therapy.

From Los Angeles Times

That procedure seems pretty much to be electroshock therapy, utilizing this newfangled thing called electricity.

From Salon

Eagleton, a Missouri Democrat and a vice-presidential nominee in 1972, had been hospitalized three times for depression and undergone electroshock therapy, a revelation that derailed his chance to serve in the White House.

From Washington Post

With electroshock therapy, the anesthetized patient receives a direct electrical current, which causes a seizure.

From Salon