General Anxiety Disorder Flashcards
What is Yerkes-Dodson Law?
how anxiety/arousal affects performance
What is abnormal anxiety?
- excessively intense/disproportionate to the stimulus
- triggered by harmless situations
- occurs without a cause
- continues beyond exposure to danger
- can’t be controlled
- causes distress
- impairs functioning
What is needed for a diagnosis of GAD?
- persistent fear and worry
- plus 3 of the following: poor concentration, restlessness, fatigue, muscle tension, initial insomnia
- symptoms for >6months
CAN’T have:
- alcohol of street drug misuse
- hyperthyroidism
- phaeochromocytoma
What are the different types of symptoms for GAD?
- psychological
- physical
- behavioural
What are the psychological symptoms of GAD?
- constant worry, intrusive thoughts
- feeling of apprehension and dread
- poor concentration
- (if severe) depersonalisation, derealisation
What are the physical symptoms of GAD?
- tremor, sweetness, “butterflies”, palpitations
- muscular tension, tension headache
- hyperventilation (difficulty taking a breath, “atypical” chest pain, parasthesiae in hands, feet and lips)
What are the behavioural symptoms of GAD?
- putting things off because if anxiety
- avoidance of particular situations
- “self medication”: misuse of drugs or alocol to relieve anxiety
What is the percentage of GAD in women? in men?
What age is it most common, what is the median age of onset?
women: 5.3%
men: 2.8%
- most common in young adult life median age on onset in 30y
What is the aetiology of GAD?
- 1st degree family history GAD increases risk by 2.5x
- molecular genetics (GWAS)
- overactive amygdala
- childhood trauma, parental rejection or over control
- major life stress
What are the treatment of GAD?
- psychological therapy (CBT, muscular relaxation, mindfulness, online help lines)
- medication (SSRIs, tricyclic antidepressants, pregabapentin, benzodiazepines, beta blockers
- lifestyle changes
From what is GABA synthesised and what synthesises it?
-glutamic acid decarboxylation (from glutamic acid to gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA))
What kind of receptor is GABA?
transmembrane, ligand-gated ion channel receptor
What are the different subunits, and how are they arranged?
alpha1, beta 2, alpha1, gamma2, beta2
Where does GABA bind on the receptor? What does it cause?
- between alpha and beta subunit
- cause Cl ions to flow into neurone, leading to hyper polarisation
Where does benzodiazepines bind? What does it do?
- between alpha and gamma subunit (has to be alpha 1, 2 or 3 and gamma 2 or 3)
- potentiates action of GABA and increases Cl- influx: positive allosteric modulator (POM) at GABA receptor: increase frequency of opening of Cl channels
