http://exhibits.library.stonybrook.edu/mfp/files/original/76ecfbd2e17b8488ea48d423f8dcfe1d.pdf 74b3bb12d1d55f13fb85ea3183ddef70 PDF Text Text September 9, 19 83 Gregory Teas, M.D. Alexian Brothers Medical Center 800 West Biesterfield Road Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 Dear Dr. Teas, The established recommendations for ECT are those that have been published by the APA Task Force on Electroconvulsive Therapy (1978). There are other guidelines in my book (Fink, M.: Convulsive Therapy: Theory and Practice, Raven Press, New York, 1979) and a recent British manual (Fraser, M.: _E_(_3_T_: _A_ Clinical Guide, John Wiley, New York, 1982). Unfortunately, none answer your questions for maintenance ECT or out-patient ECT. it is generally assumed that courses of ECT will begin in a hospital setting, where a pre-treatment spine x-ray and ECG are recommended. There are no ‘laboratory' tests that are prerequisite to a course of ECT, although all guides suggest that a medical 'clearance' be obtained, and presumably this will include such routine laboratory tests as CBC, urinalysis, and SMA 12. During a course of ECT, ECG records are often repeated if the patient's medical condition warrants — where cardiovascular disease is pre-existent and where the treatments are marked by cardiovascular events. Spine x-rays are rarely repeated but may be if the patient complains of back pain or it there is a remarkably 'violent' treatment experience. I see no reason to change these guidelines for patients maintained on treatments at home. For a more definitive answer, I suggest you address your request to Melvin Sabshin, M.D., the Medical Director of the APA. It was the recommendation of the APA Task Force that a permanent committee on ECT be maintained by the APA to answer inquiries such as yours. If enough members write with their questions, perhaps this recommendation will be implemented. Sincerely yours, Max Fink, MD. Professor of Psychiatry � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Correspondence Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Correspondence to: Teas, Gregory Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context mfp-05-00-030-4-094 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1983 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource <a title="Fink, Max, 1923-" href="http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n79039548" target="_blank">Fink, Max, 1923-</a> Subject The topic of the resource Correspondence -- Correspondence Relation A related resource The Max Fink Collection Description An account of the resource Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a title="IN COPYRIGHT - EDUCATIONAL USE PERMITTED" href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/" target="_blank">IN COPYRIGHT - EDUCATIONAL USE PERMITTED</a> Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Special Collections and University Archives, University Libraries. Stony Brook University Libraries (State University of New York). Language A language of the resource en-US Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Correspondence