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Improvement in verbal memory performance in depressed in‐patients after treatment with electroconvulsive therapy
Author(s) -
Biedermann S. V.,
Bumb J. M.,
Demirakca T.,
Ende G.,
Sartorius A.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/acps.12652
Subject(s) - electroconvulsive therapy , california verbal learning test , verbal memory , verbal learning , depression (economics) , psychology , recall , cognition , psychiatry , clinical psychology , economics , cognitive psychology , macroeconomics
Objective Electroconvulsive therapy ( ECT ) is a highly effective and well‐tolerated therapy for severe and treatment‐resistant depression. Cognitive side‐effects are still feared by some patients and clinicians. Importantly, cognitive impairments are among the most disabling symptoms of depression itself. Methods Patients suffering from a severe episode of depression were treated with either ECT or treatment as usual ( TAU ) in an in‐patient setting. Matched healthy participants served as controls ( HC ). Verbal memory was tested with the California Verbal Learning Test ( CVLT ) before the specific treatment started ( ECT = 15, TAU = 16, HC = 31) and 2 months after the last ECT session or 2 months after discharge respectively. Results Before the specific treatment started, depressed patients performed substantially worse compared with HC in total, short‐ and long‐delay recall in the CVLT , while the ECT group showed the worst performance. More severely depressed patients showed worse performances in these measures. Intriguingly, verbal memory showed a significant improvement in ECT ‐treated patients, but not in the other groups. No differences between the groups were found at follow‐up. Conclusion Contrary to the widely feared assumption that ECT has long‐term impact on memory functions, we found evidence that ECT is superior to TAU in improving verbal memory in depressed patients.