psychopathology 2 Flashcards
(35 cards)
what is bipolar disorder
major depressive disorder with manic episodes
during the period of mood disturbance, three or more of the following symptoms have persisted:
Inflated self-esteem or grandiosity
Decreased need for sleep
More talkative than usual or pressure to keep talking
Flight of ideas or subjective experience that thoughts are racing distractibility
Increase in goal-directed activity or psychomotor agitation
Excessive involvement in pleasurable activities that have a high potential for painful consequence
what are the consequences of bipolar
highly comorbid for drug/alcohol abuse
excessive gambling or buying
20% rate of commit or attempt suicide - women attempt more but are less successful, men attempt less but are more successful
what is schizophrenia
misconception that sz individuals have a split personality, as name means “split mind”
chronic and often debilitating
many aetiologies/underlying diseases
there are positive, negative, disorganised, and cognitive symptoms
what are positive symptoms of Sz
behaviours not frequently observed in the healthy population
positive symptom: what are delusions
- strange beliefs that are rigidly maintained despite the absence of evidence
- beliefs that thoughts/actions are controlled by someone
positive symptoms: what are hallucinations
sensory experience in the absence of any input
auditory are most common
can be visual, olfactory, tactile, etc
they are low order or high order (sensory-perceptual-cognitive)
sz: disorganised speech/behaviour
disorganised speech:
- tangental communication style
- word salad
- repetitive speech
- neologisms
disorganised behaviour:
- inappropriate affect or lack of inhibition
- bizarre behaviour
what are negative symptoms of sz
reduction of behaviour usually evident in the healthy population
e.g.,
Anhedonia (lack of pleasure)
Avolition (lack of motivation)
Alogia (lack of words)
Social Withdrawal
Catatonic behaviour (lack of movement)
what are cognitive symptoms of sz
Executive function in schizophrenia (Martin et al, 2015)
Deficits planning, cognitive flexibility, verbal fluency, ability to solve complex problems, working memory
Social Cognition
Social cognitive deficits apparent prior to onset of psychosis
Social cognition best predictor of clinical outcome
Cognitive problems may contribute to the broader pattern of symptoms typical of Schizophrenia
Consistent with evidence from neuroimaging studies showing Prefrontal Cortex dysfunction
sz: neurodevelopment and neurodegeneration - 2 hit hypothesis
Sz theorised as a neurodevelopment disorder and/or neurodegenerative disorder
Neurodevelopmental – early cognitive or behavioural/personality
Neurodegenerative – early adolescence onset of frank psychosis
2 hit hypothesis - e.g. genetic disposition + cannabis use
biological basis of Sz - dopamine hypothesis
associated with abnormally high level of activity in networks sensitive to the dopamine neurotransmitter
evidence from classic antipsychotic drugs
effect of overdosing amphetamines
what are some prenatal risk factors of sz
influenza virus
maternal malnutrition
birth complications - e.g. oxygen deprivation
social and psychological upbringing sz
Low socioeconomic status
Urban upbringing
Rates of Schizophrenia are double that of rural areas
Access to mental health services?
Within-city variations
Poverty
Family environment
Migration
Low IQ <- common genetic factors
what are the three chapters of classification of anxiety disorders
anxiety disorders
obsessive compulsive and related disorders
trauma and stressor-related disorders
what are phobias
intense irrational fear couples with great effort to avoid
knowledge that the fear is groundless does not diminish the fear
what are social phobias
Social anxiety disorder
Intense fear of being watched and judged by others
Negative evaluation
But also positive evaluation! (Weeks et al, 2008)
Emerges in childhood/adolescence
High risk of substance abuse
what are specific phobias
Extreme, irrational fear of a particular object or situation
Teach the person to relax
Exposure therapy
Cognitive therapy
Relaxation/meditation
Blood-injection-injury phobia
Slow pulse, low blood pressure, slack muscles, faint
what are panic disorders and agoraphobia
Occurrence of unexpected panic attacks
Symptoms
Restricted breathing, dizziness, tingling feeling, sweating, trembling, heart palpitations, chest pains
Diagnosed after recurrent unexpected attacks
Accompanied by agoraphobia
Fear of being in situations in which help might not be available/escape might be difficult
general anxiety disorder
Continuous and pervasive feelings of anxiety
Symptoms
Feeling of inadequacy
Over sensitive
Difficulty concentrating
Questioning of decisions
Bodily symptoms
what is OCD
Obsessions:
Recurrent unwanted and disturbing thoughts
Compulsions:
Ritualistic behaviours to deal with the obsessions
Surprisingly early onset (often before 10)
Awareness of irrational behaviour
what are stress disorders
Triggered abruptly by an identifiable and horrific event
Psychological effects similar across events
Psychological effects:
Period of numbness
Dissociation
Acute stress disorder:
Recurrent nightmares/waking flashbacks
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD):
Enduring reaction to the trauma, persistent for 1 month after the stressor
what is PTSD? what are the symptoms?
Chronic sometimes lifelong disorder following a traumatic experience
Symptoms:
- Re-experiencing symptoms
- Arousal symptoms
- Avoidance symptoms
- Emotional numbness
- Loss of interest
- Angry outbursts
- “Survivor guilt”
biological basis for anxiety disorders?
heritability around 30-40%
Malfunctioning autonomic nervous system
Despite their commonality neuroimaging studies show anxiety disorders have common and unique biological underpinnings
Specific and social phobias
Hyperactivation in amygdala and insula
biological basis for PTSD?
Hypoactivation in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC) and Prefrontal Cortex
Re-experience and avoidance severity associated with decreased activity of ACC
Unable to inhibit old memories
Dissociation and the prefrontal cortex
