A forthcoming University of Houston study challenges the foundational safety claim of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), providing new evidence that the electric current used in the procedure largely bypasses the scalp and directly impacts the brain. The research, which will be presented at the 2026 IEEE EMC+SIPI Symposium, undermines the 80-year-old assertion that 0.9 amps of current is harmlessly diverted by the scalp, protecting the brain from damage.
The study utilized a high-resolution three-dimensional digital model of the head to trace the path of current during ECT. Contrary to previous claims that the scalp carries 90–95% of the current away from the brain, the findings indicate that 82.5% of the total current flows through the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and brain, with only 1.5% passing through the scalp. The CSF acts as a major highway distributing current throughout the brain, according to the researchers.
Experts involved in the study also highlight two mechanisms of potential brain damage: heat generation and electroporation. Electrical energy converts into heat within the brain, and higher current produces more heat, which can cause temporary injury, permanent damage, or cell death. Additionally, electricity can create pores in cell membranes through electroporation. When voltage is high enough, these pores overwhelm the brain's repair mechanisms, allowing toxic material to flood in and leading to cell death.
Professor John Read, a leading ECT researcher, draws a parallel between the effects of ECT and closed-brain injury, noting documented changes in the brain similar to traumatic brain injury. These findings have prompted the Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR) to renew its call for a ban on ECT devices, asserting that they meet the FDA's threshold for posing an 'unreasonable and substantial risk' of injury.
CCHR has long demanded that the FDA overturn its 2018 decision to lower the risk classification of ECT devices. Under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. § 360f), the FDA has the authority to ban any device posing such a risk. In the United States, an estimated 100,000 people undergo ECT annually, and CCHR has documented its use on teenagers and even children as young as five in some states.
Jan Eastgate, president of CCHR International, stated, 'Electroshock devices meet the FDA threshold, which need to be revisited. Decades of research document brain damage, memory loss, cognitive deficits, and mortality, while regulators have never required evidence of long-term safety or effectiveness.'
CCHR has been instrumental in securing bans on ECT for minors in California (1976) and Texas (1993). The World Health Organization declared in 2005 that there are no indications for ECT on minors and that it 'should be prohibited through legislation.' Western Australia banned it for under-14s in 2014, the Australian Capital Territory banned it for under-12s, and Ireland banned it for anyone 18 and under in May 2026.
Survivors describe the devastating impact. Eastgate herself received ECT as a teenager after an undiagnosed underactive thyroid was mislabeled as depression. She awoke with searing head pain, failed to recognize her mother, and later could not remember friends or parts of her education. She calls it a barbarity 'like a grenade going off in her body.' Proper medical treatment for her thyroid ended her symptoms, but recovery of lost memory took years.
Recently, Paris Jackson spoke out about undergoing nine 'painful' ECT sessions in three weeks, recommended when she felt suicidal after psychiatric drugs and hospitalizations. She experienced severe head pain and amnesia, with no memory of visits or conversations with friends despite photographic evidence. Her doctor had told her, 'It's not as barbaric as it used to be. They use general anesthetic. You're knocked out when they shock you.'
Utah Rep. Jake Sawyer (R) received ECT in 2018 after being told it was safe with minimal long-term effects. He now suffers long-term damage and memory loss, stating, 'My vocabulary is nowhere near what it used to be, and making new memories is vastly more difficult than it was before,' and 'I've lost many, many, many years of memories.' He wants ECT banned.
Eastgate concludes, 'Electroshocking individuals, especially after failed psychiatric drug treatments and institutionalization that deprives individuals of their autonomy, liberty and the right to an undamaged body and life, is an unnecessary practice that patients need to be protected from. All electroshock methods for all ages should be prohibited.'
