Depression Flashcards
what are affective disorders?
affective disorders are characterised by disturbances in mood and the main types are depression and mania
what is unipolar disorder?
the mood is always low
what is bipolar disorder?
low mood alternates with mania - manic-depressive illness
state the monoamine theory of depression
in depression there is a functional deficit of the transmitters noradrenaline (NA) and 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)
ANTIDEPRESSIVE DRUGS AUGMENT MONOAMINE TRANSMISSION
What effect does inhibition of monoamine oxidase (MAO) have
an antidepressant effect as MAO metabolises NA and 5HT
What does reserpine do
it depletes monoamine stores in the nerve endings - causes depression
what are the two main categories of drugs used in affective disorders
- those used to treat unipolar depression - namely the antidepressants
- those used to treat bipolar disorder
what are the main classes of antidepressant drugs ?
- Inhibitors of the reuptake of monoamine transmitters:
- tricyclic antidepressants e.g. imipramine, clomipramine
- SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) e.g. fluoxetine
- miscellaneous reuptake inhibitors e.g. maprotiline - MAO inhibitors e.g. phenelzine
- Atypical antidepressants
Name a MAO-A selective inhibitor
MOCLOBEMIDE
Name a non-selective MAO inhibitor
PHENELZINE, ISOCARBOXAZID
Name the non-selective MAO inhibitor that can be metabolised to MDMA and what is the problem with this
Tranylcypromine
can cause mdma toxicity - can cause life threatening serotenergic toxicity
name a MAO-B inhibitor and its clinical use
Selegiline is a MAO-B inhibitor and it can be used in parkinsons treatment as it stops breakdown of dopamine and increases amount of L-DOPA
Name a tricyclic antidepressant
imipramine
name a tricyclic antidepressant
amitriptyline
name a tricyclic antidepressant
clomipramine
