Electroconvulsive therapy ameliorates treatment-resistant depression in patient with Lewy body dementia

AKGÜL Y. S. S., GÜLTEKİN M., DEMİREL-ÖZSOY S.

Neurocase, 2025 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Publication Date: 2025
  • Doi Number: 10.1080/13554794.2025.2490785
  • Journal Name: Neurocase
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, PASCAL, CINAHL, Linguistics & Language Behavior Abstracts, MEDLINE, Psycinfo
  • Keywords: Depression, dementia, electroconvulsive therapy, Lewy body dementia, treatment-resistant depression
  • Erciyes University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Lewy body dementia (LBD), the second most common degenerative dementia after Alzheimer’s disease, is frequently associated with neuropsychiatric symptoms such as depression, anxiety, and apathy. These symptoms may precede cognitive decline, often resulting in misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has emerged as a promising option for treatment-resistant depression in LBD. This report describes a 68-year-old female patient with LBD who received multiple ECT sessions for persistent severe depression and suicidal ideation. ECT led to marked symptom improvement across several hospitalizations. This case underscores the diagnostic and therapeutic challenges of neuropsychiatric symptoms in LBD and highlights ECT as a potential alternative when pharmacotherapy is inadequate. Early identification of LBD in patients with late-onset depression is essential to guide individualized treatment strategies.