Question

After several failed attempts at treating major depressive episodes over the years, Patrick contemplates undergoing ECT. He discusses this with his doctor, who warns him that ECT can lead to _____, which can last for at least 6 months after the procedure is completed.

Answer 1

Answer:

Memory loss

Explanation:

ECT (electroconvulsive therapy) is a medical treatment for people suffering from mental illnesses such as depression or bipolar. The therapy involves the neural stimulation through electrical shocks. This is done while a patient is under anesthesia, and this is used as a "last resort" treatment because of the many things that could go wrong.

A dangerous symptom that can arise from this treatment is memory loss.

Our memories are basically a sequence of certain neural impulses, such as seeing something, is converted to a neural impulse by the eye, so that it can be interpreted by the brain. Any foreign electrical impulse has the potential to overwrite those memories.