
Federal appeals court vacates FDA rule banning electric shock devices to treat self-harming behavior
CNN
A Massachusetts school for individuals with severe behavioral issues and intellectual disabilities can continue to use electric shock devices to stop students from harming themselves and others, a federal court ruled earlier this month, after the US Food and Drug Administration sought to ban such usage in 2020.
The case surrounds the rarely administered and highly controversial use of electric stimulation devices (ESDs) to treat individuals who put themselves, and sometimes others, at severe risk of injury. The FDA and critics have said the risks outweigh the benefits, while proponents, including students' parents, say the practice is a court-approved, medically sound last resort with no viable alternative. In March 2020, the FDA banned the use of ESDs in particular contexts, saying the devices provide an "unreasonable and substantial risk of illness or injury." The FDA's ban only extended to the use ESDs for treating self-injurious or aggressive behavior, still allowing their use for the treatment of smoking addiction, among other purposes.More Related News