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Continous screaming controlled by electroconvulsive therapy: A case study
Author(s) -
Snowdon John,
Meehan Tom,
Halpin Rohnda
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
international journal of geriatric psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.28
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1099-1166
pISSN - 0885-6230
DOI - 10.1002/gps.930091111
Subject(s) - screaming , electroconvulsive therapy , distress , psychiatry , psychology , depression (economics) , delusion , medicine , psychotherapist , schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , philosophy , linguistics , economics , macroeconomics
Patients in long‐term care who scream continuously or continually cause considerable distress to other residents and staff. It is suggested that many such patients (whether demented or not) are depressed. However, antidepressants, ranquillizers and behavioural management techniques often fail to control the screaming. This article documents he affectiveness of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in the case of a 69‐year‐old woman with mild mental retardation, who had a past history and current evidence of depressive symptoms and who screamed for increasingly prolonged periods during the 4 months perior to ECT. It is recommended that use of ECT be considered in cases of elderly people who scream incessantly, especially if they might be depressed.