Socijalna psihijatrija, Vol. 54 No. 1, 2026.
Pregledni rad
https://doi.org/10.24869/spsih.2026.38
Electrostimulation Therapy of the Brain in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: A Narrative Literature Review and Croatian Experiences
Petra Visković
; Klinički bolnički centar Zagreb, Klinika za dječju i adolescentnu psihijatriju, Zagreb, Hrvatska
*
Dinko Horvat
; Klinički bolnički centar Zagreb, Klinika za dječju i adolescentnu psihijatriju, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Ivana Stefanović
; Klinički bolnički centar Zagreb, Klinika za dječju i adolescentnu psihijatriju, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Marta Okružnik Želalić
; Klinički bolnički centar Zagreb, Klinika za dječju i adolescentnu psihijatriju, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Gordan Majić
; Klinički bolnički centar Zagreb, Klinika za dječju i adolescentnu psihijatriju, Zagreb, Hrvatska; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Medicinski fakultet, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Ivan Begovac
; Klinički bolnički centar Zagreb, Klinika za dječju i adolescentnu psihijatriju, Zagreb, Hrvatska; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Medicinski fakultet, Zagreb, Hrvatska
* Dopisni autor.
Sažetak
Electrostimulation therapy of the brain (ESTB), also known as electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), is a medical procedure in which a controlled epileptic seizure is induced by an electrical current, and it has been used in child and adolescent psychiatry since the 1940s. Although cases of ESTB use in children are present in the literature, they are currently
underrepresented and often neglected, and its application remains controversial, particularly in the pediatric population. Therefore, this narrative review aims to present the available literature on the efficacy and safety of ESTB in children and adolescents, along with a case report. A search of the PubMed database was conducted in November 2025 for the period from 2015 to 2025. Sixteen studies of various designs that reported on the use and efficacy of ESTB in the pediatric
population were included. The majority of the studies had an observational design, with one systematic review and two
randomized controlled trials, which represents a novelty of this review. The results consistently indicate high efficacy
and a clinically positive response to ESTB in the treatment of mood disorders and catatonia, where rapid and clinically
significant improvement is often achieved, particularly in emergency conditions. In psychotic disorders, moderate but
relevant response rates are reported. However, most of the available studies have methodological limitations, including
the lack of randomized and longitudinal research, which complicates the assessment of long-term outcomes. In Croatia, ESTB is currently applied only in adults and not performed in minors; therefore, this paper presents the case of a younger adult.
Ključne riječi
Electrostimulation Therapy of the Brain; ESTM; Electroconvulsive Therapy; ECT; Children; Adolescents; Croatia
Hrčak ID:
350309
URI
Datum izdavanja:
27.3.2026.
Posjeta: 0 *