Largest-ever survey questions ECT’s effectiveness
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Published
15 August 2025
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A world-leading University of East London academic has led the largest-ever international survey of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) recipients, revealing that most patients and their families report little or no benefit from the treatment - and in many cases say it made things worse.
The research, published in the International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, was led by Dr John Read, Professor of Clinical Psychology at UEL, alongside a team of three clinical psychologists and three people with lived experience of ECT. The study gathered responses from 1,144 participants across 44 countries, including both former patients and their relatives.
The findings raise serious questions about the ongoing use of ECT, a psychiatric procedure in which electric currents are passed through the brain to induce a brief seizure, typically used to treat severe depression.
Five measures of efficacy
The survey assessed ECT’s impact across five measures: helping the problem for which it was prescribed, improving mood, perceived helpfulness, improving quality of life, and reducing suicidality. On every measure, most recipients and most relatives said the treatment either made no difference or had a negative effect.
According to the study, only 45 per cent of recipients reported that ECT helped the initial problem. Forty-one per cent said it improved mood, 41 per cent found it helpful, 29 per cent felt it improved quality of life, and 33 per cent said it reduced suicidal feelings. The rest reported no benefit - or worse outcomes.
Almost half (49.1 per cent) said their quality of life was made “much worse” (21.6 per cent) or “very much worse” (27.5 per cent) by the treatment. The authors note that quality of life reflects not just perceived benefits but also any adverse effects, including well-documented long-term memory loss.
Given these results, and the lack of evidence from placebo-controlled trials in recent decades, the researchers call for an immediate suspension of ECT in clinical settings until new, independent large-scale trials can determine whether its benefits outweigh its risks.
Lack of evidence since 1985
Dr Read, from the School of Childhood and Social Care, emphasised that the scientific basis for ECT remains outdated and inconclusive
"There have been no placebo-controlled studies of ECT for depression since 1985,” he said.
No studies show that ECT has any benefits at all beyond the end of treatment. Our findings, from the largest survey ever conducted, indicate that claims that ECT is effective are, at best, unproven and, at worst, misleading.”
Voices from experience
Two of Dr Read’s co-authors, Lisa Morrison and Sarah Hancock, contributed both as researchers and as recipients of ECT. Their testimonies underline the personal impact of the treatment and the perceived gap in informed consent.
“Patients should be told it only works for a minority of people and even then only temporarily,” said Ms Morrison. “As an ECT recipient I have permanently lost precious memories of my children’s birthdays and many other milestones in their lives. It’s devastating. The worst part is nobody ever told me this could happen. We deserve the same rights as every other person.”
Ms Hancock added: “Patients are rarely told that there is little or no evidence that ECT is more effective than placebo for depression. I wish this and ECT’s risks of injury and absence of medical or rehabilitation interventions post-treatment had been made known to my parents when I was catatonic.”
Next steps
This is the first of ten planned papers from the survey, with a second - examining what information patients are given before undergoing ECT - due to be published in the Journal of Medical Ethics. The wider research aims to inform policy, clinical practice, and public understanding of ECT, particularly regarding informed consent and treatment alternatives.
Dr Read said the team hoped the findings would spark debate among clinicians, regulators, and policymakers about whether ECT should continue without stronger evidence of effectiveness.
“With no robust evidence in four decades, and a high proportion of patients reporting serious long-term harm, it’s time for a fundamental re-evaluation of ECT’s role in mental health care,” he said.