Modified electroconvulsive therapy （MECT） is an important way of physical therapy in psychiatry， which has a strong effect on treatment-resistant mental disorders. Because of the adverse effects on brain electrical activity and memory function， researchers engaged in improving MECT constantly. This paper reviews the effects of MECT in the treatment of mental disorders from the perspectives of combined use of anesthetics， hyperventilation， adjusted anesthesia-ECT time interval and improved electrical stimulation.