Safety and ECT Stimulus Electrodes: I. Heat Liberation at the Electrode-Skin Interface.
Calculations reveal that the electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) stimulus cannot cause burn injury to brain tissue, but poor electrode-skin contact is a risk for skin burn. This article reviews factors that influence skin temperature, including electrical charge, skin impedance, topographic conformity between electrode and skin, electrode surface area, and thermal diffusivity of electrode material.
Swartz
Conrad M.
CM
Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, University of Health Sciences/The Chicago Medical School, and North Chicago V.A. Medical Center, North Chicago, Illinois, USA.