Biological Treatment for Sz

Question 1

How do anti psychotic drugs work

Answer 1

• antipsychotics prevent dopamine from binding to posy synaptic receptors
• antipsychotics reduce the overactivity of neurones in the mesolimbic pathways

Question 2

what is the mesolimbic system

Answer 2

the group of brain regions involved in processing reward

Question 3

limitations of traditional anti psychotics

Answer 3

• can cause extra pyramidal symptoms (eg stiff jerky movements)
• can cause side effects in patients with schizophrenia
• unable to treat negative symptoms of schizophrenia

Question 4

Question $5.$ What other side effects are common in people who take antipsychotics?

Answer 4

The mobility issues caused by the extrapyramidal side effects of antipsychotics means that patients are at risk of physical side effects too. This includes obesity, cardiac issues, and an increased chance of developing diabetes.

Question 5

Question $7.$ Explain why antipsychotic drugs both are unable to treat negative symptoms, and potentially make them worse.

Answer 5

Antipsychotics reduce the dopamine activity levels in all areas of the brain. Negative symptoms of schizophrenia are thought to be caused by reduced dopamine levels in the frontal cortex. So antipsychotics not only lack the ability to treat these symptoms, but could make them more intense, because they further reduce dopamine activity levels in the frontal cortex.

Question 6

what does typical antipsychotics bind to

Answer 6

dopamine receptors
newer drugs called atypical antipsychotics bind to dopamine receptors for shorter periods of time and are able to treat negative symptoms of schizophrenia

Question 7

study support for antipsychotic drugs

Answer 7

a study by leucht used a meta analysis of 65 previous studies to compare and analyse all the results of the effectiveness of antipsychotic drugs. The study found that antipsychotic drugs were more effective at treating schizophrenia than the placebo drugs

Question 8

what is a limitation and a typical and typical antipsychotics

Answer 8

• patients who take either drugs are likely to experience relapse

Question 9

Explain why atypical antipsychotics have fewer side effects than typical antipsychotics

Answer 9

Atypical antipsychotics bind to dopamine receptors for a shorter period of time than typical antipsychotics. By allowing dopamine to still bind to the receptors from time-to-time, people who take atypical antipsychotics typically experience less side effects, because there is less disruption to dopamine activity in all areas of the brain.

Question 10

What was the main finding from Leucht’s study of antipsychotic drugs?

Answer 10

• Antipsychotics were significantly more effective than a placebo.
• Antipsychotic drugs led to lower relapse rates.
• Antipsychotic drugs led to less severe positive symptoms.

Question 11

How do antipsychotics drugs work

Answer 11

• they work by binding to dopamine receptors and this blocking their action, stimulating them
• By reducing the stimulation of dopamine system in the brain, antipsychotics can eliminate the hallucinations experienced by patients
• the effectiveness of these dopamine and agonists in reducing the symptoms of Sz is what led to he development of he dopamine hypothesis

Question 12

what are the stats for serious side effects related to antipsychotics

Answer 12

• between 20-25% of sufferers from some form of disordered motor movements like tremors and involuntary tics
• this is a reason why about 50% of sufferers stop taking drugs within 1st year. However, the newer forms of antipsychotic drugs have been found more effective

Question 13

what did silverman say about antipsychotics

Answer 13

(1987) stated that anti psychotics have beneficial side effects for some people in increasing levels of attention and information processing. Chlorpromazine is most effective approximately 80-85% of schizophrenics (keane 1992)

Question 14

what are antipsychotic drugs bad at treating

Answer 14

• negative symptoms

- dysfunctional mental processes