Anesthesia: Loss of feeling or awareness. A general anesthetic puts the person to sleep. A local anesthetic causes loss of feeling in a part of the body such as a tooth or an area of skin without affecting consciousness. Regional anesthesia numbs a larger part of the body such as a leg or arm, also without affecting consciousness. The term "conduction anesthesia" encompasses both local and regional anesthetic techniques. Many surgical procedures can be done with conduction anesthesia without significant pain. In many situations, such as a C-section, conduction anesthesia is safer and therefore preferable to general anesthesia. However, there are also many types of surgery in which general anesthesia is clearly appropriate.
Antidepressant: Anything, and especially a drug, used to prevent or treat depression. See the entire definition of Antidepressant
Brain: That part of the central nervous system that is located within the cranium ( skull ). The brain functions as the primary receiver, organizer and distributor of information for the body. It has two (right and left) halves called "hemispheres." See the entire definition of Brain
Depression : An illness that involves the body, mood, and thoughts, that affects the way a person eats and sleeps, the way one feels about oneself, and the way one thinks about things. A depressive disorder is not the same as a passing blue mood. It is not a sign of personal weakness or a condition that can be wished away. People with a depressive disease cannot merely "pull themselves together" and get better. Without treatment, symptoms can last for weeks, months, or years. Appropriate treatment, however, can help most people with depression. See the entire definition of Depression
Electroconvulsive therapy : A procedure in which an electric current is passed through the brain to produce controlled convulsions (seizures) to treat patients with depression , particularly for those who cannot take or are not responding to antidepressants, have severe depression, or are at high risk for suicide . Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is believed to act by a massive neurochemical release in the brain due to the controlled seizure. The most common side effect is short-term memory loss, which usually resolves quickly. ECT typically relieves depression within 1 to 2 weeks after beginning treatments. See the entire definition of Electroconvulsive therapy
Hospital: It may seem unnecessary to define a "hospital" since everyone knows the nature of a hospital. A hospital began as a charitable institution for the needy, aged, infirm, or young. See the entire definition of Hospital
Memory: 1. The ability to recover information about past events or knowledge. 2. The process of recovering information about past events or knowledge. 3. Cognitive reconstruction. The brain engages in a remarkable reshuffling process in an attempt to extract what is general and what is particular about each passing moment. See the entire definition of Memory
Outpatient: A patient who is not an inpatient (not hospitalized) but instead is cared for elsewhere -- as in a doctor's office, clinic, or day surgery center. The term outpatient dates back at least to 1715. Outpatient care today is also called ambulatory care.
Pain: An unpleasant sensation that can range from mild, localized discomfort to agony. Pain has both physical and emotional components. The physical part of pain results from nerve stimulation. Pain may be contained to a discrete area, as in an injury, or it can be more diffuse, as in disorders like fibromyalgia . Pain is mediated by specific nerve fibers that carry the pain impulses to the brain where their conscious appreciation may be modified by many factors. See the entire definition of Pain
Seizure: Uncontrolled electrical activity in the brain, which may produce a physical convulsion, minor physical signs, thought disturbances, or a combination of symptoms. See the entire definition of Seizure
Short-term memory: A system for temporarily storing and managing information required to carry out complex cognitive tasks such as learning, reasoning, and comprehension. Short-term memory is involved in the selection, initiation, and termination of information-processing functions such as encoding, storing, and retrieving data. See the entire definition of Short-term memory
Side effects: Problems that occur when treatment goes beyond the desired effect. Or problems that occur in addition to the desired therapeutic effect. See the entire definition of Side effects
Suicide : The act of causing ones own death. Suicide may be positive or negative and it may be direct or indirect. Suicide is a positive act when one takes ones own life. See the entire definition of Suicide
Therapy: The treatment of disease . See the entire definition of Therapy
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From the Doctors at MedicineNet.com  |
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- Depression - Read about depression causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and types, including manic depression (bipolar disorder), postpartum depression and clinical depression. Source:MedicineNet
- Schizophrenia - Get information on schizophrenia symptoms (delusions, hallucinations), causes (genetics), diagnosis, treatment of schizophrenics (antipsychotic drugs) and types (paranoid). Source:Government
- Mental Illness - Know the basics of the causes, treatment and prevention of mental illnesses like depression, bipolar, schizophrenia and obsessive compulsive disorder. Source:WebMD Medical Reference from The Cleveland Clinic
- Read 12 more Electroconvulsive Therapy related articles ...
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