Anxiety, OCD and addiction

Question 1

How does stress impact the activity of the 10th cranial nerve (vagus nerve)?

Answer 1

It triggers the adrenal glands, which triggers the release of epinephrine & norepinephrine into the blood

Question 2

1.(Reminder) what does the HPA axis stand for
2. How does stress impact the activity of the HPA axis?

Answer 2

1. Hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal gland
2. It causes the release of glucocorticoid hormones into the blood stream (mainly cortisol)

Question 3

Why are glucocorticoids necessary

Answer 3

They’re necessary for maintaining circadian rhythm of all the organs in the body. They’r ealso released for cardiovascular function, immune function, skeletal growth, reproduction and cognition

Question 4

How are respiratory infections and stressful life events correlated

Answer 4

Stress weakens immune system. People are at a greater susceptibility of developing respiratory illness a few days after a very stressful life event

Question 5

About ___% of women and __% of men experience PTSD at some point

Answer 5

About 10% of women and 5% of men experience PTSD at some point

Question 6

What parts of the brain associated with likely hood of developing PTSD

Answer 6

abnormal HPA axis activity and smaller hippocampus & PFC associated with likelyhood of getting it (not certain)

Question 7

___% of the variance in PTSD is related to genetics

Answer 7

30% of the variance in PTSD is related to genetics

Question 8

List some anxiety disorders

Answer 8

• Generalized anxiety disorder
• Social anxiety disorder
• Panic disorder (can cause things like anticipatory anxiety and agoraphobia)

Question 9

What are some drugs given to people with anxiety disorders

Answer 9

SSRIs
benzodiazepines (only in case of extreme panic attack - not given often bc it can be very addictive

Question 10

1. What’s the prevalence of OCD in the population
2. What’s the average onset age for females
3. What’s the average onset age for males

Answer 10

1. 2%
2. females - late teens/early twenties
3. males - adolescence

Question 11

Genetic factors account for __% of the variability in OCD

Answer 11

Genetic factors account for 50% of the variability in OCD

Question 12

What are the 4 main types of obsessive thoughts for ppl with OCD

Answer 12

cleaning, intrusive forbidden thoughts (violence, sexual, religious) , hoarding and symmetry

Question 13

What are some of the hypothesized brain areas responsible for OCD

Answer 13

• People who’ve had infections that damaged parts of basal ganglia, cingulate gyrus or prefrontal cortex start having OCD like symptoms
• People with OCD also have increased activity in the frontal lobes and striatum

Question 14

What is the cingulotomy procedure and what disorder is it meant to treat

Answer 14

It’s a procedure to treat OCD where you lesion a fiber bundle between the PFC and anterior cingulate cortex

Question 15

what are the hypothesized brain areas responsible for addiction?

Answer 15

• Abnormalities in PFC and its interactions with the striatum and dopamine neurons

Question 16

True or false - sometimes, the only reason that people stay on hard drugs is because of negative reinforcement (scared of the withdrawal symptoms) and they could otherwise get off these drugs & never use again

Answer 16

NO!! withdrawal is the easy part of overcoming addiction - intense desires persist well after withdrawal has worn off

Question 17

How does naltrexone treat addiction & who is it prescribed to?

Answer 17

It’s a long acting opioid receptor agonist that reduces the high that’s caused by opiates by outcompeting them for receptor binding sites. Prescribed to alcoholics & opioid addicts

Question 18

What effects does naloxone (narcan) have on people who overdosed? How long do its effects last?

Answer 18

It reverses the effects of an opiate overdose: gets ppl to regain consciousness & gets them to breathe again. Effects are cleared away within 1 hour

Question 19

1. Who is methadone prescribed to?
2. How is it administered?

Answer 19

1. Prescribed to heroin addicts (has a slower onset & offset than heroin)
2. It’s administered orally in a lab under surveillance of clinicians

Question 20

What are the drugs prescribed in the maintenance approach to treat addiction

Answer 20

methadone, buprenorphine and varenicline

Question 21

1. Who is buprenorphine prescribed to?
2. How does it work?
3. How do we prevent it from being an addictive drug

Answer 21

1. Prescribed to people addicted to opiates
2. It strongly binds to opioid receptors, but it only produces weak psychological effects while blocking the effects of other opiates
3. it’s mixed with naloxone to remove the high that comes with it

Question 22

Who is varenicline prescribed to & how does it work?

Answer 22

Treats nicotine addiction: it’s a partial agonist of nicotinic (acetylcholine) receptors

Question 23

What are some of the types of brain stimulations being explored as a treatment for addicton?

Answer 23

Deep brain stimulation and transcranial magnetic stimulation (stimulates areas of cerebral cortex)