Death From Electrical Convulsion Therapy

Abstract

Ten years have elapsed since the introduction by Meduna in 1934 of convulsion therapy, and five since Cerletti and Bini first described the use of electricity as a convulsant. A not unreasonable early prejudice finds a later echo in the comment of Critchley (1943) that convulsion therapy “is crude, dangerous and repellent to anyone who holds the central nervous system in respect.”