The sensitivity of the Mini-Mental State Examination to detect objective cognitive side-effects induced by electroconvulsive therapy, results from the Dutch ECT Consortium

BACKGROUND: Monitoring cognitive side-effects following electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is crucial for balancing side-effects and clinical effectiveness. Unfortunately, evidence-based guidelines on cognitive testing following ECT are lacking. A frequently used test in global ECT practice is the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). We examined the change of the MMSE and its performance in identifying a decline in predefined neuropsychological measures sensitive to ECT-induced cognitive changes: verbal recall and verbal fluency. METHODS: The mean MMSE scores pre- and one week post-ECT were comp... Mehr ...