There is occasionally a need to do a full or nearly full discharge on Li-Ion batteries in order to recalibrate the state-of-charge indicator if the embedded controller gets confused, or if the battery is nearing the end of its usable life and has significantly diminished capacity.

But in general, deep discharges are bad for any electrochemical cell, and should only be done to prevent or forestall something worse.

NiMH cells shouldn't be "topped off" when they're nearly full, but that doesn't mean they should be fully drained before charging.