title: Reliability of a standardized brief-pulse stimulus in ECT.
abstract: The reliability of a standardized brief-pulse stimulus in eliciting a satisfactory convulsive response was evaluated under normal clinical conditions. A total of 89 patients were given 961 initial treatments. Of these, 757 were at the standardized level with a success rate of 89%. A total of 204 trials were given at higher-than-standardized levels. Treating these as standardized level failures, the overall success rate was 70%. The probability that a standardized stimulus given to any patient at any point in the treatment series would be successful was about 7 chances in 10. Implications for the selection of ECT stimuli were discussed.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D004565:Electroconvulsive Therapy / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012015:Reference Standards