week 6 Flashcards
(97 cards)
what are psychotropic meds
- affect the action of CNS
- mind altering meds to change ones thinking, feelings, perceptions, behaviours
- manage symptoms of mental illness but not curative
top 5 most frequently prescribed psychotropic drugs
- Xanax (alprazolam)
- Zoloft (sertraline)
- Celexa (citalopram)
- Prozac (fluoxetine)
- Ativan (lorazepam)
for mood disorders we use…
antidepressants
can also use…
sedatives/anti-anxiety and antipsychotics
for anxiety disorders we use
mood stabilizers
sedatives/anti-anxiety
can also use…
antidepressants
for sleep disorders we use
sedatives/anti-anxiety
for psychotic disorders we use
antipsychotics
pharmacodynamics
biochem and physiological effects of drugs on body
We theorize how they have an effect on the body and treat mental illness but we are not 100% sure.
(MoA and effect)
pharmacokinetics
actions of body on drug
(absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion)
How long acting are they?
pharmacogenetics
genetic differences inform treatment approaches
4 neurotransmitters + what they do
serotonin
NE
dopamine
GABA
Drugs enhance, block, or otherwise change the action of the neurotransmitter in the CNS at the synaptic cleft
How they do this depends on the drugs MOA
most common prescribed classes
Benzodiazapines and SSRIs
for eating disorders and substance abuse we can use
antidepressants
can psychotropics have overlapping use?
Psychotropics have overlapping use and have been found to be effective for multiple conditions. For example antidepressants are the main treatment for anxiety disorders and antipsychotics used for bipolar disorder
what is an agonist
drugs that occupy receptors and activate them
what is an antagonist
drugs that occupy recptors but do not activate them
Other ways through works includes enhancing neurotransission action on the receptor, reuptake inhibition, preventing the breakdown of neurotransmitters.
agonist alone =
full activation
agonist + antagonist =
less activation
antagonist alone =
no activation
what are anxiolytics
meds that enhance GABA activity
ex: relief of acute anxiety, insomnia
we will focus on fast-acting, symptomatic treatments for anxiety in this lecture. These drugs may be used alone in mild or situational anxiety, but often need to be combined with daily, longer acting medication to successfully control anxiety (antidepressants).
ex: benzodiazepines, non-benzodiazepine anxiolytic, non-benzodiazepine hypnotic
what is GABA
= major inhibitory transmitter in the CNS
calm your mind
give list of 4 benzodiazepines
alprazolam (xanax)
clonazepam (rivotril)
lorazepam (ativan)
diazepam (valium)
“Z-hypnotics”
zepam’s, zolam
example non-benzodiazepine anxiolytic
buspirone (buspar)
describe non-benzodiazepine hypnotic
diphenhydramine (ZzzQuil, Benadryl)
doxylamine (unisom)
describe to me the pharmacologic target of benzodiazepines + what it does
targets = GABA receptor
allosteric modifier
- binding increases frequency w which chloride channel opens, resulting in hyperpolarization (and inhibition) of postsynaptic neuron