Which ECT technique works best for stubborn depression?
NCT ID NCT05923801
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study looks at people with depression that hasn't improved with other treatments. If they don't get better after four sessions of one type of ECT (right unilateral), they will either continue with that type or switch to another type (bitemporal). The goal is to see which approach lifts depression faster and causes fewer memory problems.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 196 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2023
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Voluntary written informed consent of the participant or their legally authorized representative has been obtained prior to any screening procedures * Age 18 or older * Diagnosis of major depressive disorder (DSM-5 296.21-30) or bipolar disorder, depressed (DSM-5 296.51-54; 296.84). Exclusion Criteria: * Contra-indication for general anesthesia * Non-Dutch speaking * Diagnosis of schizoaffective disorder or schizophrenia * Diagnosis of substance use disorder in the past six months * Diagnosis of neurocognitive disorder or intellectual disability alongside a MoCA score \<23 * Previous ECT course in the past three months * Participation in an interventional Trial with an investigational medicinal product or device * Pregnancy
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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UPC Kortenberg
RECRUITINGKortenberg, Belgium
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