Optimal Dose of Succinylcholine and Rocuronium for Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)

Summary

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is the transcutaneous application of small electrical stimuli to the brain to produce generalized seizures for the treatment of selected psychiatric disorders such as severe depression. The aim of ECT is to induce a therapeutic tonic seizure where the person loses consciousness and has convulsions. Patients need general anesthesia and neuromuscular blockade to treat pain and avoid excessive tonic clonic motor contraction that might be associated with compression fractures. Neuromuscular blocking drugs (NMBD) are, therefore, administered after induction of general anesthesia to induce neuromuscular blockade. Despite the importance of NMBDs to provide optimal conditions for ECT treatment, the optimal NMBD dose to achieve acceptable neuromuscular blockade without excessive or untoward effects has not previously been identified in any study and in a prospective randomized fashion. The aim of this study is, therefore, to identify the optimal NMBD dose of two commonly used neuromuscular blocking agents (succinylcholine and rocuronium) in order to optimize the muscle strength modulation during ECT that facilitates ECT with the minimal side effects.

Timeline

Start

2011-05

Primary completion

2013-07

Completion

2015-02

Publications

• Background Cheam EW, Critchley LA, Chui PT, Yap JC, Ha VW. Low dose mivacurium is less effective than succinylcholine in electroconvulsive therapy. Can J Anaesth. 1999 Jan;46(1):49-51. doi: 10.1007/BF03012514.
• Background Turkkal DC, Gokmen N, Yildiz A, Iyilikci L, Gokel E, Sagduyu K, Gunerli A. A cross-over, post-electroconvulsive therapy comparison of clinical recovery from rocuronium versus succinylcholine. J Clin Anesth. 2008 Dec;20(8):589-93. doi: 10.1016/j.jclinane.2008.06.006.
• Background Wagner KJ, Mollenberg O, Rentrop M, Werner C, Kochs EF. Guide to anaesthetic selection for electroconvulsive therapy. CNS Drugs. 2005;19(9):745-58. doi: 10.2165/00023210-200519090-00002.
• Background Eikermann M, Hunkemoller I, Peine L, Armbruster W, Stegen B, Husing J, Peters J. Optimal rocuronium dose for intubation during inhalation induction with sevoflurane in children. Br J Anaesth. 2002 Aug;89(2):277-81. doi: 10.1093/bja/aef177.
• Background Miguel RV, Soto R, Dyches P. A double-blind, randomized comparison of low-dose rocuronium and atracurium in a desflurane anesthetic. J Clin Anesth. 2001 Aug;13(5):325-9. doi: 10.1016/s0952-8180(01)00282-3.
• Background Reynolds LM, Lau M, Brown R, Luks A, Fisher DM. Intramuscular rocuronium in infants and children. Dose-ranging and tracheal intubating conditions. Anesthesiology. 1996 Aug;85(2):231-9. doi: 10.1097/00000542-199608000-00002.

Drugs

Indications

No indication recorded.