Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has a negative effect on word fluency shortly after a course of ECT. This improves during follow-up. Elderly have a greater improvement compared to younger patients. More precise the scores on word fluency tests were significantly influenced by age. The effect of age changed from a negative influence directly after ECT to a positive effect during follow-up. The negative effect for older patients is what you expect. The change to a more positive effect is unexpected.
What is word fluency
Word fluency is tested by a simple test, the word fluency test, right. In this research , patients were tested before ECT, shortly after ECT and at 3 months and 12 months after discharge. The word fluency tests consist of naming as much animals and professions as possible during 1 minute.
What is Semantic Memory
Semantic memory is tested with the word fluency tests. Semantic memory are all those acquired facts, concepts and skill you gather during your life. We can learn new facts or concepts from our experiences with semantic memory. Episodic memory represents our memory of events and experiences in a serial form from which we can reconstruct events that took place at a given point in our lives.
Long-term memory
Semantic memory and episodic memory are both part of long term memory.
Why do elderly regain their vocabulary, their semantic memory better than younger patients?
We don't know. This effect could be due to more life experiences or more mental reserve. Another possible explanation could be that stimulation of the neural system results in restorative plasticity, especially in the elderly. Because elderly are at a disadvantage for disturbances of other kinds of memory (such as short-term memory), restorative plasticity may adhere to specific brain regions.
Article discussed:
Changes in Everyday and Semantic Memory Function After Electroconvulsive Therapy for Unipolar Depression.
PMID: 17804988
Authors: Schat A, van den Broek WW, Mulder PG, Birkenhäger TK, van Tuijl R, Murre JM
Journal: J ECT, 23 (3): 153-157, 2007
You can read the whole article on my PBWIKI
Showing posts with label electroshock ECT electroconvulsive therapy depression. Show all posts
Showing posts with label electroshock ECT electroconvulsive therapy depression. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Elderly regain vocabulary better after ECT than younger patients
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Side effects of ECT how do they work out?
Side effects of ECT, the possible memory loss is a topic for debate. Not only between psychiatrists but also between patients. Here is another story of how these side effects ruined the life of a patient. Made a comment to this post but it was not published on the blog as a comment. Here is another more positive opinion about ECT from a patient.
Side effects will be a topic for discussion for a long time. On this blog two other views are described in 2 posts. First a view from Prof Max Fink and here a post about an ongoing discussion with Prof Sackeim.
I will post your comment anyway.
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