Decreased Efficacy of Combined Benzodiazepines and Unilateral ECT in Treatment of Depression

In a retrospective study, 124 patients with depression who were concomitantly receiving ECT and benzodiazepines were compared with patients (matched for age, sex, diagnosis, and laterality of ECT) receiving ECT without benzodiazepines in order to investigate the efficacy of ECT in terms of therapeutic response and length of stay in hospital. Most of the subjects (84% of cases and 89% of controls) improved on ECT, but the benzodiazepine group of patients receiving unilateral ECT showed a significantly poorer response and a longer stay in hospital. No such difference was detected with the bilateral ECT. It is therefore concluded that prescription of benzodiazepines with ECT does compromise the therapeutic effect of unilateral ECT for depression.