Use of electroconvulsive therapy in a patient with chorea neuroacanthocytosis and prominent delusions.

A middle-aged white man with a diagnosis of chorea neuroacanthocytosis developed progressive and distressing persecutory delusions with an obsessional component. Pharmacotherapy was ineffective in controlling the symptoms or halting their progression. Electroconvulsive therapy was attempted with very limited success but had to be discontinued owing to mild elation and increased irritability. The patient's distress was only improved after his transfer to a nursing home specializing in Huntington disease.