Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica
-
Acta Psychiatr Scand · May 2017
Review Comparative StudyThe mortality rate of electroconvulsive therapy: a systematic review and pooled analysis.
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) remains underutilized because of fears of cognitive and medical risks, including the risk of death. In this study, we aimed to assess the mortality rate of ECT by means of a systematic review and pooled analysis. ⋯ The ECT-related mortality rate was estimated at 2.1 per 100 000 treatments. In comparison, a recent analysis of the mortality of general anesthesia in relation to surgical procedures reported a mortality rate of 3.4 per 100 000. Our findings document that death caused by ECT is an extremely rare event.