English abstract
Objectives: We sought to identify subgroups of psychiatric patients in a sample of patients
admitted at a tertiary care hospital in Oman who received electroconvulsive therapy
(ECT) based on their demographic and clinical outcomes. Methods: We retrospectively
collected data from patients who received ECT at Al Massarah Hospital, Muscat,
Oman, between January 2015 and December 2019. Sociodemographic characteristics,
clinical profiles, and psychiatric comorbidities were examined. Results: A total of 179
psychiatric patients received ECT; 96 (53.6%) were females. The average age at diagnosis
was 42.5 years. Two-step cluster analysis showed 70 (39.1%) patients in cluster one and
109 (60.9%) patients in cluster two. Patients in cluster one included more (61.4%)
females, were older (mean = 55.2 years), married (95.7%), and unemployed (88.6%).
They reported they had comorbidities (55.7%) and less frequent ECT use (mean = 8.7)
than patients in cluster two. Clusters differences were found on gender (p = 0.001), age (p
< 0.001), marital status (p < 0.001), and occupation (p = 0.001). Significant differences
were found for diagnosis (p < 0.001), comorbid medical conditions (p < 0.001), and
use of ECT sessions (p = 0.006). Conclusions: Psychiatric patients receiving ECT are
heterogeneous, with different demographic and clinical outcomes. Our study has shown
that patients in cluster one are older females, unemployed, with more comorbidities, and
depressive disorders, but received fewer ECT sessions. This study provides important
information for clinicians to identify strategies to promote the use of ECT on its
effectiveness and safety issues for each group.
