Depression Flashcards
Mental symptoms of depression:
Impaired attention Less pleasure Inc self critical thoughts Disturbed sleep Dec in appetitive Guilty, helpless, hopeless, isolated, suicidal feelings
Depression affects about ___ % of the population. There is a __genetic component. The mean age has ___
13-20% of the population
genetic component
dropped.
Monoamine depletion hypothesis.
Norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin decrease induces depression
Reserpine
Hypertension drug. Decreases monoamines
Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs)
Increase norepinephrine, serotonin. Side effects.
Tricyclics antidepressants (aka__)…
Imipramine, blocks reuptake of serotonin, norepinephrine.
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) such as…, ___ synaptic ______
Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Lexapro
Increase synaptic serotonin
Also less side effects
SSRIs have about as much effect as a ____
Placebo
Side effects of SSRIs:
May cause mania
Inc suicide in teens or when suddenly withdrawn
Inc osteoporosis (less Ca in bones)
Cushing’s Syndrome
People with high levels of cortisol. Prone to depression.
Corticotrophic Releasing Factor (CRF)
Secreted by brain in new situations.
Binds to nucleus accumbens to allow dopamine increase.
Why do Antidepressants take 3-6 weeks to show an effect?
Inc neurogenesis in hippocampus. It takes 3-6 weeks for neurons to repopulate the hippocampus.
Neurons die during depression because…
Cortisol from stress reduces BDNF, which keeps neurons alive.
Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT)
Rapid treatment. Stimulus of brain. Inc BDNF. Some memory loss due to disrupting consolidation.
Deep Brain Stimulation
Fix the circuit-board failure. Turn down Area 25 (re-regulation)
Area 25
Normalizes input to amygdala. Increases emotional reactions. Overload = chaos, leads to depression
Bipolar depression
Patients cycle between depression and mania. (Usually months/ years per cycle, could be hour cycles though)
Maniac symptoms
Staying up, feeling like you don't need sleep Frivolous shopping Easily agitated Inc activity, energy Inflated self esteem Talkative
Bipolar disorder
BDNF dec
Neuronal death
Depakote
Used to tread bipolar disorder, increases BCl-2 and neurogenesis
Lithium
Effective treatment of bipolar disorder. Increases neurogenesis and won’t make patients manic,
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
Light dependent. Can be treated with lightswiht natural light spectrum.
Need much more light stimulation to suppress melatonin.
