Shock therapy (psychiatry)

Shock therapy describes a set of techniques used in psychiatry to treat depressive disorder or other illnesses, by inducing seizures or other extreme brain states. It was started in the 1930s.[1] Shock therapy covers multiple forms.

The only form in current clinical practice is electroconvulsive therapy. Other forms, no longer in use, include:

• Insulin shock therapy, introduced by Manfred Sakel in 1933 for the treatment of schizophrenia.[2] This resulted in a coma state for a short amount of time.
• Convulsive therapy, using pentylenetetrazol or other agents to induce seizures. The first use was with cardiazol by von Meduna of Budapest; the belief at the time was there was "some kind of biological antagonism between schizophrenia and epilepsy".[2]
• Deep sleep therapy.

Shock therapy has fallen away in use in lieu of other forms of treatment.[1]