BBC documentary `My child, ECT and me`

"Electroconvulsive therapy - in which a small electric current is passed through the brain causing a seizure - is now used much less often than it was in the middle of the last century. But controversially it is now being used in the US and some other countries as a treatment for children who exhibit severe, self-injuring behaviour."

"Seventeen-year-old Jonah Lutz is severely autistic. He's also prone to outbursts of violent behaviour, in which he sometimes hits himself repeatedly."

"His mother, Amy, is convinced that if it wasn't for electroconvulsive therapy - ECT - he would now have to be permanently institutionalised for his own safety, and the safety of those around him."

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"Because the long-term effects of ECT on children exhibiting self-injuring behaviour are unknown, in some countries - and in a handful of US states - the treatment is not allowed. The UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence doesn't recommend ECT for use on under 18s."

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You can watch the Our World documentary "My Child, ECT and Me" at 21:30 on Sunday on the BBC News Channel, on BBC World at these times and on the BBC iPlayer

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-39961472