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| Typical Number in Hospital: | Cost Bands: 2 | References: 4 |
Electrosleep, or electronarcosis, which is a more general term for the passage of electric currents through the head, may be used to induce sleep and for the treatment of insomnia, anxiety, depression and irritability. There are also reports of its use for the treatment of chronic alcoholism, hypertension, hypothalamic disorders and peptic ulcers.
The general principle is to deliver small currents (time averaged to about 500 [u]A) for one hour or more. The electrodes may be saline-gauze sponges over metal plates applied between frontal and occipital locations.
The mechanism of operation is not properly understood and such techniques are not used routinely in most hospitals.
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