Electroconvulsive Therapy-associated Acute Coronary Syndrome in the Absence of Coronary Artery Disease

Challenges during Electroconvulsive Therapy—A Review

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is one of the most successful treatment techniques employed in psychiatric practice. ECT is usually administered as a last resort to a patient who fails to respond to medical management or on an urgent basis as a life-saving procedure when immediate response is desired. It is performed under general anesthesia and is often associated with autonomic changes. All attempts should be made to minimize the resulting hemodynamic disturbances in all the patients using various pharmacological methods. Anesthesiologists providing anesthesia for ECT frequently encounter patients with diverse risk factors. Concurrent cardiovascular, neurological, respiratory, and endocrine disorders may require modification of anesthetic technique. It is ideal to optimize patients before ECT. In this review, the authors discuss the optimization, management, and modification of anesthesia care for patients with various cardiac, neurological, respiratory, and endocrine disorders presenting for ECT to improve the safety of the procedure. It is not infrequent that an anesthesiologist also plays an important role in inducing a seizure. Proconvulsants such as caffeine, adjuvants like opioids, hyperventilation, and appropriate choice of anesthetic agent for induction such as etomidate or ketamine can help. The use of BIS monitoring to guide the timing of electric stimulation is also elaborated in this review.

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy as a complication of electroconvulsive therapy

OBJECTIVE

To examine the evidence regarding takotsubo cardiomyopathy as a complication of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).

DATA SOURCES

Searches in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts (1966-August 2011) were conducted.

STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION

Published studies and case reports that mentioned takotsubo cardiomyopathy following ECT were reviewed.

DATA SYNTHESIS

Twelve case reports were available for review. There were 7 documented cases of takotsubo cardiomyopathy, 4 cases of myocardial stunning, and 1 case of cardiogenic shock following ECT. Although takotsubo cardiomyopathy was not mentioned in 5 of the cases, some clinical characteristics were consistent with this diagnosis. Left ventricular ejection fraction and the electrocardiogram returned to normal within a few days in the majority of the cases. All cases were in women, the majority of whom were postmenopausal (average age 64 years). Takotsubo cardiomyopathy developed after a single course of ECT in 6 of the cases, while the syndrome developed after more than 1 course in the other 6 cases. ECT was successfully readministered without syndrome recurrence in 4 of the cases, but only after 3 of the 4 patients received a β-adrenergic receptor blocking agent prior to each subsequent therapy session. The β-adrenergic blocking agents used were esmolol in 1 case and labetolol in the other 2.

CONCLUSIONS

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is a serious but transient potential complication of electroconvulsive therapy. Limited evidence indicates that β-adrenergic receptor blocking agents may help prevent its reoccurrence in patients needing further electroconvulsive treatment. Health care providers in psychiatry should be aware of this potential complication of electroconvulsive therapy, especially in postmenopausal women. However, many questions remain regarding this issue.

Acute coronary syndrome (Takotsubo cardiomyopathy) following electroconvulsive therapy in the absence of significant coronary artery disease: case report and review of the literature

We report a case of myocardial infarction occurring in a 45-year-old woman in the absence of coronary artery disease during a course of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) for major depression. After the third ECT session, the patient reported substernal chest pain, and although the electrocardiogram was normal, cardiac enzymes were found to be elevated. Cardiac workup to determine etiology during hospital stay showed no evidence of coronary artery disease on catheterization. Cardiac echocardiograph and computed tomography findings were consistent with a diagnosis of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy. This cardiac syndrome is a stress-induced syndrome occurring in the absence of coronary artery stenosis and associated with surging of catecholamines. It is diagnosed on the basis of the shape of the apical ballooning observed on cardiac imaging, which resembles a "takotsubo" or octopus fishing pot in Japan, where this syndrome was first recognized. Coincidentally, after termination of her ECT course, this patient was also diagnosed with Loeys-Dietz syndrome, an inherited connective tissue disorder that can predispose sufferers to aortic dissection. This case illustrates the importance of careful workup of chest pain in the setting of ECT, even if electrocardiogram findings seem unremarkable initially.