Biological treatment for schizophrenia Flashcards
How do the drugs to treat Schizophrenia work?
They are psychoactive changing the balance of neurotransmitters in the brain
What neurotransmitters particularly do the anti-psychotics effect?
They lower the levels of Dopamine in the synapse
How do the anti-psychotics work?
They block the receptor sites meaning there’s less activity at the synapse
How do the anti-psychotics work?
They most commonly block the receptor sites meaning there’s less activity in the synapse
What are the two types of antipsychotics?
Typical and A-Typical
Why is Clozapine (an atypical) different to other antipsychotics like Haloperidol (a typical)?
It blocks less D2 receptors and can also effect other neurotransmitters like Serotonin
What is the first thing a doctor is responsible for with drug treatment?
Prescribing the relevant medication
Why would there be follow up meetings with the patient after prescription?
Monitoring the patient for side-effects and effectiveness
What happens if the medication isn’t being effective or causes side-effects?
Changing medication type and dosage as needed
What is Tardive Dyskinesia
A side-effect where you make involuntary muscle movements in the face
What did Meltzer (2004) find?
Haloperidol gave significant improvements in all aspects compared to placebo (as did 2 of the other drugs)
What did Emsley find?
84% of patients on anti-psychotics had atleast 50% reduction in symptoms if they were given early enough
What did Hogarty find?
relapse rates 48% vs 80% without these types of medication
What did Rosa (2005) find?
only 50% of patients complied with taking their anti-psychotics.
What did Leiberman (2005) find?
Many patients stop taking their medication because of the severe side effects, this effects the effectiveness of this treatment
What did Leucht find?
They work better for positive symptoms than negative symptoms
What is a major problem with people taking medication?
They cause side-effects which are harmful and might stop people taking the medication making it less effective
What is a problem if people stop taking the medication
They symptoms might return so the medication isn’t long lasting
What is a strength of drugs compared to CBT?
They are relatively quick acting compared to other treatments like CBT
Why might CBT be a better treatment than drugs (pick 2)
It is longer lasting as people are taught skills rather than relying on the chemical, It doesn’t cause side-effects and therefore might be a better therapy
Which type of symptom is effected more by the medication
positive’ symptoms
What did Kane (1988) find?
200 patients who showed no improvement with the commonly used Haloperidol, 30% responded to Clozapine with an improvement in both positive and negative symptoms
