Neuroimaging study of electroconvulsive therapy for depression

Xiaolu Chen; Hanjie Yang; Long-Biao Cui; Xiao Li

doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1170625

Neuroimaging study of electroconvulsive therapy for depression

Front Psychiatry. 2023 Jun 9:14:1170625. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1170625. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Xiaolu Chen¹, Hanjie Yang², Long-Biao Cui^{3

4}, Xiao Li⁵

Affiliations

¹ The First Branch, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
² Department of Neurology, The Thirteenth People's Hospital of Chongqing, Chongqing, China.
³ Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China.
⁴ Schizophrenia Imaging Lab, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China.
⁵ Department of Psychiatry, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.

Abstract

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is an important treatment for depression. Although it is known as the most effective acute treatment for severe mood disorders, its therapeutic mechanism is still unclear. With the rapid development of neuroimaging technology, various neuroimaging techniques have been available to explore the alterations of the brain by ECT, such as structural magnetic resonance imaging, functional magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, positron emission tomography, single photon emission computed tomography, arterial spin labeling, etc. This article reviews studies in neuroimaging on ECT for depression. These findings suggest that the neurobiological mechanism of ECT may regulate the brain functional activity, and neural structural plasticity, as well as balance the brain's neurotransmitters, which finally achieves a therapeutic effect.

Keywords: arterial spin labeling; depression; electroconvulsive therapy; magnetic resonance imaging; mechanism; positron emission tomography.

Publication types

Review