17 Feb 2014
Early Electroshock machine c.1940
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), formerly known as electroshock, is a treatment in which convulsive seizures are electrically induced in patients for therapeutic effect. Before these machines were tried, drugs and other methods to induce seizures were used as a means of treatment for severe depression and schizophrenia. Electroshock was first introduced in 1938 by two Italian neuropsychiatrists, and gained widespread use as a form of treatment in the 1940s and 1950s.
Today, ECT is most often used as a treatment for clinical depression that has not responded to other treatment. Exactly how it works is not known, but it can be effective. Contrary to movie images (especially ‘One Flew Over The Cockoo’s Nest’), ECT is now painless as it has been administered under anaesthetic and with muscle relaxants since the early 1950s. When this machine was first used, the patients might suffer a lot of pain, and risk broken long bones from the muscle spasms. The treatment has a side effect of inducing some memory loss, which is partly positive as patients often forget having the treatment.
The Doctor selects a suitable voltage range, adjusts the power dial and administers the shock via two probes, one either side of the patient’s head. It can be triggered by a hand or foot switch as the doctor prefers, selectable on the machine. The milliammeter provides feedback on the current delivered. Presumably the doctor administered a few lower voltage test shocks to begin with.
The Bedeque Area Historical Society recognizes the generosity of Dr. Lloyd Molyneaux, Bedeque’s local physician, in providing this machine for exhibit.
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), formerly known as electroshock, is a treatment in which convulsive seizures are electrically induced in patients for therapeutic effect. Before these machines were tried, drugs and other methods to induce seizures were used as a means of treatment for severe depression and schizophrenia. Electroshock was first introduced in 1938 by two Italian neuropsychiatrists, and gained widespread use as a form of treatment in the 1940s and 1950s.
Today, ECT is most often used as a treatment for clinical depression that has not responded to other treatment. Exactly how it works is not known, but it can be effective. Contrary to movie images (especially ‘One Flew Over The Cockoo’s Nest’), ECT is now painless as it has been administered under anaesthetic and with muscle relaxants since the early 1950s. When this machine was first used, the patients might suffer a lot of pain, and risk broken long bones from the muscle spasms. The treatment has a side effect of inducing some memory loss, which is partly positive as patients often forget having the treatment.
The Doctor selects a suitable voltage range, adjusts the power dial and administers the shock via two probes, one either side of the patient’s head. It can be triggered by a hand or foot switch as the doctor prefers, selectable on the machine. The milliammeter provides feedback on the current delivered. Presumably the doctor administered a few lower voltage test shocks to begin with.
The Bedeque Area Historical Society recognizes the generosity of Dr. Lloyd Molyneaux, Bedeque’s local physician, in providing this machine for exhibit.
