Effects of zopicloone and Lorazepam on ect seizure duration : clinical implications of findings from an animal model.

Lorazepam is commonly prescribed to treat insomnia in depressed patients who receive electroconvulsive therapy (ECT); however, lorazepam may interfere with ECT seizure parameters, and may thereby compromise the efficacy of the treatment. This study therefore sought to assess whether zopicione, a hypnotic agent, interferes less with the ECT seizure. For ethical reasons, the study utilized an animal model. Sprague-Dawley rats (n=10/group) received either zopicione (1.5 mg/ kg), lorazepam (0.2 mg/kg), or a placebo equivalent. After 30 minutes, an electroconvulsive shock was administered to the rats. It was observed that the motor seizure duration but not the total motoric phase was significantly attenuated by zopicione. Lorazepam did not impact significantly upon either seizure measure. It is concluded that zopicione may be a suitable hypnotic for patients receiving ECT only if sufficient time is allowed for the drug to be substantially washed out of the body.

Attenuation of ECS-induced retrograde amnesia by using an herbal formulation.

Earlier research indicated the efficacy of a complex herbal formulation in the attenuation of electroconvulsive shock (ECS)-induced amnestic deficits in rats; this study sought to ascertain whether a simplified herbal formulation (Memorin; Phyto-Pharma, India) also was effective. Rats pretreated for a fortnight with Memorin (200 mg/kg/day) or vehicle were exposed to a passive-avoidance learning paradigm in a shuttle box. The next day, the rats were administered two true or sham ECSs, 5 h apart; recall of the pre-ECS learning was reassessed on the following day. ECS was found to produce significant retrograde amnesia (p < 0.002). Memorin attenuated the ECS-induced amnesia (p = 0.00003) without influencing the ECS seizure duration. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

ECT-induced anterograde amnesia: can the deficits be minimized?

To date, no pharmacological agent has been confirmed to lessen electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)-induced memory deficits. BR-16A is an herbal preparation, containing various organic extracts, used in India for the enhancement of cognition (among other applications). In the present study, adult male Sprague-Dawley rats received six once-daily electroconvulsive shocks (ECSs). Half the animals were treated with BR-16A (200 mg/kg/day) for 1 week before ECS, during the ECS course, and during the post-ECS learning assessment phase; the remaining animals received vehicle alone. In experiment 1, rats (n = 16/treatment group) were preassessed for learning on days 3 and 5 of exposure to the Hebb-Williams complex maze and were reassessed after comparable exposure to the maze starting from the second day post-ECS. In experiment 2, rats (n = 9/treatment group) were preassessed for number of trials to satisfactory learning and number of wrong arm entries in a T-maze and were reassessed on the second day post-ECS. The learning preassessments were conducted just prior to the commencement of the BR-16A/vehicle treatments. In both experiments, rats receiving BR-16A performed significantly better than controls. It is concluded that BR-16A protects against ECS-induced anterograde amnesia. BR-16A may therefore have scope in minimizing ECT-induced learning deficits.