Psych - Intro Flashcards
What are psychiatric disorders?
BRAIN DISORDERS
Most psych disorders are DEVELOPMENTAL disorders
Men DO get depressed
Psych disorders are HEREDITARY
Psych disorders are NOT MANIFESTATIONS OF WEAKNESS, nor are they character flaws
ADHD as a brain disorder
Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder is characterized by a DELAY IN MATURATION
There is a THINNER CORTEX in ADHD
Individuals without ADHD finish cortical development earlier than ADHD
Prefrontal cortex (attention, decision making, impulse control) development is particularly delayed – in patients without ADHD, the prefrontal cortex develops LATE but it is even further in ADHD - becomes very noticeable, especially as school work becomes more rigorous; have trouble keeping up with peers
Psych disorders are DEVELOPMENTAL disorders
Age on onset of most psych disorders COINCIDES WITH BRAIN MATURATION (present in childhood, adolescence or young adulthood)
At age 24-25, the brain is actually still developing!
3 main developmental abormalities of schizophrenics? DEFICIENT MYELINATION, EXCESSIVE EXCITATORY PRUNING (too many strong excitatory synapses), REDUCED INHIBITORY ACTIVITY –> ALL of these take place during the developmental period!!!
Definition of mental disorder
Mental disorders are characterized by abnormalities in cognition, emotion, or mood or on the highest integrative aspects of behavior, such as social interactions of planning of future
These are CLINICALLY SIGNIFICANT syndromes associated with DISTRESS, DISABILITY or BOTH
Psych disorders are not only disorders that affect MENTAL health - they have adverse effects on PHYSICAL HEALTH as well as on the course of other medical disorders (depressed patients may take longer to recover from heart surgert, etc)
As long as the brain has normally developed and is functioning properly…
isolated deviant events (political, religious, sexual), or periods of grief/mourning, or a bad test or bad day or bad month are NOT MENTAL ILLNESSES
There has to be a brain abnormality!
What are the burdens of psychiatric disorders measured by?
DALYs – Disability Adjusted Life Years
Mental illness accounts for the most DALY’s of all medical disorders (roughly 30%)
Unipolar Depression and Alcoholism are the most common
Years where disability is mostly seen? 15-44 years old
Mortality associated with psychiatric disorders?
Each year, there are an estimated 36,000 suicides, 90% of which occur in individuals that are mentally disturbed
Due to the high rate of suicides, AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF PERSONS WHO SUFFER FROM MENTAL DISORDERS = 56 YEARS
EPIDEMIOLOGY
The % of people who suffered from a psychiatric disorder IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS = 32.4% (anxiety = 19%, substnace use = 13.4%, mood disorders = 9.7%)
**Those who suffered from a SERIOUS MENTAL DISORDER in the past 12 months = 5% –> 1/20!!! These 5% comprise the main burden of illness***
17% will suffer from MDD in their LIFETIME
Comorbidities
If a patient has one specific psych disorder, they are LIKELY TO HAVE ANOTHER ONE that is commonly associated with it…
Common associations = DEPRESSION and ANXIETY, BPD and SUBSTANCE ABUSE, ANTI-SOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER and SUBSTANCE ABUSE
Likelihood of co-morbidity is linked to the SEVERITY OF THE PSYCHIATRIC DISORDER
Comorbidities are not limited to psych disorders (depression and heart disease, cancer can lead to depression, etc)
Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders
Pharmacologic Treatments
Psychotherapies – includes PSYCHODYNAMIC psychotherapy (explore the impact of childhood experiences on current behaviors) and COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY (focuses on modifying cognitions, assumptions, beliefs, and behaviors, with the aim of influencing disturbed behaviors - basically acknowledges the problem and figures out new ways to cope with it); there is also DIALECTICAL behavioral therapy (CBT that focuses on self inflicted injury behavior); also GROUP therapy
Somatic Treatments –> includes alternative treatments like LIGHT THERAPY, ECT, TRANS-CRANIAL MAGNETIC STIMULATION, VAGAL NERVE STIMULATION and DBS
