Psychiatry Flashcards
What is ADHD?
It is characterised by 3 main symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsiveness
How is it defined by the DSM-IV and ICD-10 differently?
- DSM-IV recognises 3 subtypes of ADD, combined when all 3 features are present and just a hyperactive subtype
- ICD-10 definition is that symptoms should be present across time and situations for at least 6 months and starting before the age of 7
1% with ICD criteria and 5% with DSM-IV. It is 4 times more common in males
What are the risk factors for ADHD?
- 80% are genetically inherited
- Low birth weight
- Drug, alcohol or tobacco use pregnancy
- Head injury
- Genetic/metabolic disorders
What are the clinical features of ADHD?
Inattention: Careless with detail, fails to sustain attention, appears not to listen, fails to finish tasks, poor self-organization, loses things,
forgetful, easily distracted, and avoids tasks requiring sustained attention.
- Hyperactivity Most evident in structured situations, fidgets with hands or feet, leaves seat in class, runs/climbs about, cannot play quietly, ‘always on the go’.
- Impulsiveness Talks excessively, blurts out answers, cannot await turn,
interrupts others, intrudes on others.
What are some complications associated with ADHD?
Short term:
- Sleep
- Low self-esteem
- Family and peer relationship problems
Long term:
- Increased criminal activity
- Antisocial personality disorder
- Problems with getting jobs
What is ADHD assesed?
- Interview with family and child
- Observe the child in variety of environments
- Collateral information from school
- Rating scales
- Physical examination
What are the rating scales for ADHD?
- Strengths and difficulties questionnaire
- Connor’s rating scale
What are the medications used to treat ADHD?
- Methylphenidate: a CNS stimulant
- Atomoxetine
- Dexamphetamine:
What are some side effects of ADHD medication?
Headache, insomnia, loss of appetite, stomach ache, dry mouth, nausea
Can Can stunt growth
Need to Monitor weight, height and BP
Methylphenidate is Not recommended to take during pregnancy
What are the triad of symptoms that characterise autism?
- Abnormal reciprocal social interaction
- Communication and language impairment
- Repetitive repertoire of interests and activities
What is the prevalence of autism?
5-10 per 1000 individuals
Ratio of 3:1 boys to girls
What are the clinical features of autism?
- Abnormal social interactions: impaired non-verbal behaviour, poor eye contact, failure to develop peer relationships
- Abnormal communication or play: delay or lack of spoken language, difficulty in initiating or sustaining conversation
- Restricted interests or activities: Encompassing preoccupations and interests, adherence to non-functional routines or rituals, resistance to change
What are some neurological features of autism?
- Seizures
- Motor tics
- Increase head circumference
- Abnormal gaze monitoring
- Increased ambidexterity
What are some physiological features of autism?
- Intense sensory responsiveness
- Absence of typical response to pain or injury
- Abnormal temperature regulation
What are the rating scales for autism?
- Autism behaviour checklist
- Child autism rating scales
- Autism diagnosis observation schedule
What is bipolar disorder?
- Periods of depression and mania
What are the risk factors for bipolar disorder?
Genetic links and environmental stressors/triggers
- Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis abnormalities which are consistent with reduced HPA axis feedback
- Prolonged psychosocial stressors during childhood, such as neglect or abuse, are associated with HPA axis dysfunction in later life
- People with a history of sexual abuse or physical abuse appear to be more at risk and have a worse prognosis
What is a key question to ask someone presenting with depression?
Whether they have had manic or hypomanic episodes because treating bipolar as depression will cause the patient to become high
What is needed for a diagnosis of bipolar?
- Single episode of mania= Manic episode
- Two manic episodes= Bipolar disorder
What is the definition of a manic episode?
A distinct period lasting at least one week with 3 or more characteristic symptoms of mania:
- Elevated mood
- Increased energy
- Increased self-esteem
- Reduced attention
- Grandiose, overconfident, marked social/sexual disinhibited, reckless
- Severe impact on social functioning / poor or absent insight
- Could also have features of psychosis
What is hypomania?
Elated, overactive, social/sexual disinhibition, overspending, poor sleep
Continues to function
Partial insight retained
NO psychotic symptoms
Tend to last about 4 days
What is the management of acute mania?
- Atypical antipsychotics (Olanzapine/quetiapine)
- Semi-sodium valproate
What is used for long term mood stabilisation?
- Lithium
- Valproate
- Carbamazepine
What are the different types of bipolar?
Bipolar 1 - mania & depression, sometimes more episodes of mania
Bipolar 2 - more episodes of depression and only mild hypomania (easy to miss, always ask Sx of mania in person presenting with depression)
What is cyclothymia?
Cyclothymia - chronic mood fluctuations over 2+ yrs, episodes of depression and hypomania (not mania). Rapid cycling, episodes only lasting few days
What are some differentials that you need to rule out in bipolar disorder?
Substance abuse (amphetamines, cocaine)
Endocrine disease - Cushing’s, steroid-induced psychosis
Schizophrenia
Schizoaffective disorder - Dx when affective and first rank schizophrenic Sx equally prominent
Personality disorders - emotionally unstable, histrionic
ADHD in younger people
What is the treatment of bipolar, for a depressive episode?
– For depression –> Treat with antipsychotics alone or in combination with SSRI’s
– 1st line is Olanzapine, Lamotrigine or Quetiapine and Fluoxetine
– Do not just prescribe SSRIs by themselves as they can precipitate mania
If a patient is taking an antidepressant at the onset of an acute manic episode, the antidepressant should be stopped.
What are some of the side effects of lithium?
L- Leukocytosis
I- Insipidus diabetes (nephrogenic)
T- tremors (if coarse think toxicity)
H- Hydration ( easily dehydrates, need to drink lots
I- increased GI motility
U- Underactive thyroid
M- metallic taste (warning of toxicity), mums beware- teratogenic
lithium and diuretics= dehydration
Lithium + NSAIDs= kidney damage
What are some risk factors for depression?
Prior depression
Family history
Female
Abuse
Drug and alcohol use
Low socioeconomic status
Recent bereavement, stress or medical illness, traumatic life event
Co-existing medical conditions (chronic disease)
What are the 3 key symptoms of depression?
Low mood
Loss of energy
Anhedonia (loss of enjoyment of formerly pleasurable activities)
What are some things you may find on consultation/examination/investigations for depression?
Carry out mental state examination
- Appearance may be normal, or evidence of self beglect. substnace abuse, tearfulllness, anxious, fidegty
Speach may be monotonic and slow - patient may appear distracted
Psychotic features - eg auditory hallucinations, loss of insight
Baseline tests for FBC and TFT may be useful for ruling out anaemia and hypothyroidism, that can lead to depression
What is the name of the questionnaire used in depression?
The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (scored out of 27) is used to grade depression
– It asks patients to report over the last 2 weeks how often they have been experiencing symptoms
– Made of 9 items which is scored from 0-3
What are the scores for the PHQ-9?
– Mild = 5-9 – Moderate = 10-14 – Moderate/Severe = 15-19 – Severe = >19
What is the treatment for moderate/severe depression?
Moderate/severe depression
* Antidepressants (SSRIs, TCAs) - continued for 6+ mths after Sx stop
* Combination therapy e.g. meds + talking therapy
SSRI - Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors eg Sertraline, paroxetine, fluoxetine, citalopram
Fluoxetine 1L in children
TCAs (Tricyclic antidepressants):
Imipramine, amitriptyline
SNRIs (Serotonin-noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors):
Venlafaxine, duloxetine, Mirtazapine
What is some treatment for very severe depression
Resistant depression Tx w/ combo of antidepressants +
Lithium
Atypical antipsychotic
Another antidepressant
ECT very effective in severe cases (Electroconvulsive Therapy)
What are some conditions you would want to which have similar symptoms to GAD?
Depression and OCD
Hyperthyroidism
Pheochromocytoma
Lung disease- excessive salbutamol use
CHF medication
Hypoglycaemia
Do bloods and BP
What are some risk factors/causes of developing GAD?
Family Hx anxiety
Physical/emotional stress
Financial, bereavement etc
Hx physical/sexual/emotional trauma (in childhood)
Excessively pushy parents in childhood
Other anxiety disorder - coexisting depression
Chronic physical health condition
Worries about physical health
Female 2:1 Male
Environmental triggers/contributors: family relationships, friendships, bullies, school pressures, alcohol and drug use e.g. benzodiazepines
What is the neuropathology of GAD?
Low levels of GABA, contribute to anxiety. The frontal cortex and amygdala undergo structural remodelling due to maternal separation and isolation
- Heightened amygdala activation occurs in response to disorder-relevant stimuli in post-traumatic stress disorder, social phobia and specific phobia
Basically overfiring/activation of the amygdala
What is the non pharmalogical management of GAD?
Mild anxiety can be managed with watchful waiting and advice about self-help strategies (e.g. meditation), diet, exercise and avoiding alcohol, caffeine and drugs.
Moderate to severe anxiety can be referred to CAMHS services to initiate:
Counselling
CBT
What is the pharmacological management of GAD?
SSRI (sertraline is first-line SSRI)
– Be careful in young people as the SSRI increases anxiety initially and can lead to suicidal thoughts
Pre-gabalin
– If acutely anxious –> Benzodiazepine (but not for > 4 weeks)
Beta blockers e.g. bisoprolol for physical Sx
What is meant by obsessions and give some examples?
Obsessions= unwanted/uncontrolled thoughts and intrusive images
Aggressive impulses
contamination e.g. – becoming contaminated by shaking hands with another person
need for order e.g. – intense distress when objects are disordered or asymmetric
religious e.g. – blasphemous thoughts, concerns about unknowingly sinning
repeated doubts e.g. – wonder if a door was left unlock
What is meant by compulsions in OCD?
Repetitive actions someone feels like they must do, generates anxiety if this action is not done
checking e .g. – repeatedly checking locks, alarms, appliances
cleaning e.g. – hand washing
hoarding e.g. – saving trash or unnecessary items
What are some risk factors for OCD?
Genetic predisposition (twins, especially monozygotic)
Developmental factors
Emotional/physical/sexual abuse
Neglect
Social isolation
Teasing, bullying
Parental over protection
Psychological factors
Over-inflated sense of responsibility
Intolerance of uncertainty
Belief in controllability of intrusive
Stressors
Pregnancy
Postnatal period
Rarely
In adults: neurological conditions e.g. brain tumour, Huntington’s chorea, frontotemporal dementia, complication of brain injury to frontal lobe/basal skull
What is the pharmacological treatment of OCD?
or drug therapy (SSRI, e.g. fluoxetine 20–40mg od)
* Severe functional impairment Offer psychological therapy + drug treatment.
If inadequate response at 12wk, offer a different SSRI or
clomipramine (a TCA that also acts as a serotonin reuptake inhibtior).
Refer if symptoms persist
What are the 3 types of phobias?
Simple phobias: inappropriate anxiety
Social phobias: intense/persistent fear of being scrutinized or negatively evaluated by others leads to fear and avoidance of social situations
Agoraphobia: fear of fainting and/or loss of control are experienced in crowds away from home
What is the treatment for phobias?
For simple phobias - Treatment is only needed if symptoms are frequent, intrusive, or prevent necessary activities. Exposure therapy is effective.
For social and agoraphobia -
drug therapy SSRIs, and TCAs eg Clomipramine
Psychological therapies CBT (cognitive restructuring) +/- exposure
What is PTSD?
Develop (immediately/delayed) post exposure to stressful event/threatening, catastrophic situation
What are the common causes of PTSD?
Serious accident
Witness of violence: school, domestic, torture, terrorist attack and rape
Combat exposure
Natural disaster
Sudden death of a loved one
What are the clinical features of PTSD?
Symptoms: must be present for at least a month
- Persistent intrusive thoughts and re-experiencing
- Autonomic hyperarousal: overaction to a stimulus such as being startled, hypervigilance or insomnia
- Emotional detachment- feeling detached from people and lacking the ability to experience feelings
What are some non-pharmalogical managements for PTSD?
CBT- education about nature of PTSD and management of symptoms
Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EDMR): using voluntary multi-saccadic eye movements to reduce anxiety associated with disturbing thoughts
What are the pharmalogical treatments of PTSD?
SSRIs
It may be helpful to target specific symptoms such as sleep being improved with mirtazapine
For Hyperarousal/anxiety: consider BDZs clonazepam and propranolol
- Intrusive thoughts/hostility/impulsiveness: some evidence for use of carbamazepine, valproate, or lithium.
- Psychotic symptoms/severe aggression or agitation: may warrant use of an antipsychotic (some evidence for olanzapine, risperidone etc)
What are some primary causes of insomnia?
Fear/anxiety about falling asleep
Change of environment
Inadequate sleep hygiene
Idiopathic insomnia
What are some secondary causes of insomnia?
Sleep related breathing disorder e.g. sleep apnoea
Circadian rhythm disorders
Shift work
REM behavioural disorder e.g. Lewy body dementia, PD
Psychiatric disorders - depression (early morning waking), anxiety (early/middle insomnia)
Drugs/alcohol - steroids, antidepressants, stimulants
What are some nonpharmacological management options for insomnia?
Encourage good sleep hygiene
Sleep restriction
What are some pharmalogical management options for insomnia?
Medication (once good sleep hygiene proved unsuccessful)
Z drugs: Zopiclone, Zolpidem, Zaleplon
Sedating antidepressants: mirtazapine, amitriptyline
Melatonin
What is paraphrenia?
Psychotic illness characterised by delusions and hallucinations, without changes in affect
It’s the most common form of psychosis in old age
What are some things you might see in paraphrenia?
*no evidence of dementia w/ later onset cases - no memory problems
Delusions, hallucinations - often about neighbours
Paranoid - often re. neighbours spying, taking things
can also be misidentification, hypochondraical, religious
Partition delusion - believe people/objects can go through walls
Less -ve Sx (blunting/apathy) and formal thought disorder compared to early onset
What is the treatment steps in paraphrenia?
Relieve isolation and sensory deficits.
Low-dose atypical antipsychotics preferred as elderly are very sensitive
to side-effects, but non-compliance secondary to lack of insight is often
an issue.
What is seen in cognitive impairment?
Minor problems with cognition- mental abilities: memory, thinking
Not severe enough to interfere with everyday life
Mild cognitive impairment= pre-dementia
What are some causes of cognitive decline?
Depression
Sleep apnoea and other sleep disorders
Physical illness
Vitamin and thyroid deficiencies
Medications
Drugs and alcohol
What are some causes of delirium?
- Infection- UTI, pneumonia
- Toxicity- substance misuse, intoxication, withdrawal
- Vascular
- Epileptic
- Metabolic - hyper/othyroidism, hyper/oglycaemia, hypoxia, hypercortisolaemia
- Medications - anticholinergics, Parkinson’s meds, benzodiazepines, drug accumulation, polypharmacy, post surgery, steroids
- Nutritional/dehydration - thiamine B1 deficiency, B12 deficiency, folate deficiency
What health conditions can cause delirium and can be differentiated from schizophrenia?
Bipolar disorder – often may present with symptoms of schizophrenia
Psychotic Depression
Alcohol hallucinations, due to withdrawal
Drugs - especially Cannabis, Cocaine, LSD, magic Mushrooms (Psilocybin)
Dopamine Agonists, like Levo Dopa in Parkinsons
Encephalitis
Epilepsy’s
Dementia
What are the 4 main things seen in schizophrenia?
A form of psychosis is characterised by distortion to thinking and perception and inappropriate or blunted affect
See hallucinations and delusions, thought and speech disorders and negative symptoms
What are hallucinations?
Perceptions in the absence of stimuli. Most commonly auditory but may be visual or affect smell, taste or tactile senses
What are delusions?
A fixed or false belief no in keeping with cultural and educational background
What is thought to cause schizophrenia?
Increased size of ventricles and reduced whole brain volume
There is an increased activity of dopamine in the mesolimbic region
What are some risk factors for developing schizophrenia?
- Genetic link
- Affected brain development in early ;life
- Smoking cannabis in adolescence
- Severe childhood bullying/physical abuse
- Adverse life events
- Social isolation
- Typical age onset 20-30s
What are the positive (psychotic) symptoms of schizophrenia ?
- Delusions
- Hallucinations
- Disorganised speech
- Disorganised behaviour
- Cationic behaviour
They are all things that add to someone’s character
What are the negative symptoms of schizophrenia (removal of normal processes)?
- Less emotions
- Loss of interest
- Poverty/decreased speech
- Less motivation
What are the cognitive symptoms of schizophernia?
- Decline in cognition
- Decline in memory
- Bad learning
How can schizophrenia be diagnosed?
At least ** 1 first rank symptom** or 2 second rank symptoms
FOR AT LEAST A MONTH
What are the first rank symptoms of schizophrenia?
- Delusional perceptions- Do you ever see or hear things that you feel are giving a message that is specific to you
- Persecutory of delusions: do you have any enemies/ do you feel anyone is out to get to you
- Thought insertion/withdrawal/broadcast- are your thoughts being interfered with or controlled
- Passitivity: can another person control what you do/feel directly
- Third-person auditory hallucinations: do you hear people talking whom others can’t hear
What are the second rank symptoms of schizophrenia?
Formal thought disorder (words come out wrong, thoughts muddled)
Catatonic behaviour - excitement, posturing or waxy flexibility, negativism, mutism and stupor.
Negative symptoms - marked apathy, paucity of speech, and blunting or incongruity of emotional responses (it must be clear that these are not due to depression or to neuroleptic medication).
Any other type of hallucination, not third person auditory
What are some tests you would do on someone with suspected schizophrenia?
Bloods for organic causes of psychosis
FBC
LFT
TFT
Syphilis screen
Bloodborne virus screen
Autoimmune causes -anti–NMDA receptor antibodies for autoimmune encephalitis,ANA, anti-DS DNA for Lupus
Collateral Hx from someone else
Blood, hair or urinary screens may be used for illicit drugs and alcohol, particularly in those presenting with acute psychosis of unknown cause.
MSE, risk assessment
What are some atypical anti psychotics and how do they work?
They work by blocking dopamine and serotonin
Quetiapine
Olanzapine
Risperidone
Clozapine
Aripiprazole
They are first lone other than clozapine
What are some typical anti-psychotics and how do they work?
They work by dopamine blockade of D2 receptors:
- Haloperidol
- Chlorpromazine
When should you trial clozapine as an antipsychotic?
If 2 others have not been effective.
Why is clozapine not used as a first-line treatment?
It requires close monitoring as it has a tendency to cause aplastic anaemia
CPMS – Clozepine monitoring system. A national service in the UK, that gives advice on the drug dosage to use, depeninding on the blood test results you send to them. Compulsory for anyone on clozepine. Only consultant psychiatrists can prescribe clozapine
Check for agranulocytosis
What checks need to be done regularly for people on antipsychotics?
ECG- as QTC prolongation can occur
Glucose and lipids- antipsychotics can lead to diabetes and metabolic syndrome
If on CLOZAPINE: regular FBCs to check for AGRANULOCYTOSIS
What are some other side effects of antipsychotics?
- Urinary retention
- Blurred vision
- Dry mouth
- Weight gain
- Hyperprolactinaemia (due to dopamine blockade and dopamine down regulates prolactin)
What are the extra-pyramidal side effects of antipsychotics?
Muscle spasm, eyes rolling back
Parkinsonism
Akathisia- “inner restlessness, pacing and agitated, often intolerable. They literally can’t stop moving e.g. shaking legs, touching table
Massive RF for suicide in young males with schizophrenia
Tardive dyskinesia (months to years)
Grimacing, tounge protrusion, lipsmacking
Very difficult/impossible to treat as you’ve upregulated all the D2 receptors
These side effects are worse and more common in the older antipsychotics
What is the treatment for the side effects of the antipsychotics?
Procyclidine an anticholinergic drug
What are some non pharmacological treatments of schizophrenia?
Individual CBT: normally consists of at least 16 one-on-one sessions. It helps patients create links between their thoughts, feelings and actions with their experience of schizophrenia.
Family intervention: should include the patient suffering from schizophrenia if possible as well as their main carer. Normally consists of 10 sessions over 3 months - 1 year.
Art therapies can be particularly helpful for negative symptoms.
Self-help groups and forums (e.g. Hearing Voices groups) enable people with psychosis to share experiences and ways to cope with symptoms
This should be done alongside antipsychotic medications
What is somatisation disorder?
Characterised by at least 2 years of physical symptoms with no physical explanation
What are some causes/risk factors for somatisation disorder?
More common in women
Hx of sexual or physical abuse
Adverse childhood events
Hx trauma related disorders
What are the most common symptoms in somatisation disorder?
Speech disturbance
Swallowing disturbance
Distractible
Often GI/skin complaints
Cognitive complaints - forgetfulness, short term memory problems
Refusing to believe no organic cause
What is seen in conversion disorder?
Physical signs
Would prevent with neurological signs rather than symptoms
What are some signs seen in conversion disorder?
Paralysis
Loss of speech
Sensory loss
Seizures
Amnesia
The examinations and findings will be inconsistent
What is the difference between somatisation and conversion disorder?
-Dissociative disorders differ from somatisation in that they more often present with signs rather than only symptoms and are often acute in their presentation.
What is hypochondrial disorder?
- Where patients believe they have a serious underlying disease
- There are no physical signs or symptoms of the disease
Who is hypochondrial disorder most common in?
- It’s more common in men and people who have more contact with disease
What is hypochondria also associated with?
Dysmorphophobia
What is dysmorphophobia?
It is an excessive preoccupation with imagined or barely noticeable defects in physical appearance. For example, patients may
become preoccupied by the size of their nose, believing an objectively normal nose to be ugly and deformed
What is the management of hypochondria?
Allow patient time to ventilate their illness anxiet-ies. Clarify that symptoms with no structural basis are real and severe.
Explain negative tests and resist the temptation to be drawn into further exploration
Uncontrolled trials demonstrate antidepressant
benefit, even in the absence of depressive symptoms. Try fluoxetine 20mg, and CBT
What are dissociative disorders?
This is a group of conditions that involve disruptions or breakdowns in memory, identity or perception
- In these disorders, psychiatric symptoms occur in the absence of pathology
- More painful memories are cut-off from conscious self and instead converted into more bearable ones. It is seen as a way to cope with previous emotional trauma
What are some different types of dissociative disorders?
- Dissociative amnesia- A patient has no recollection of upsetting and personal information
- Dissociative fugue- A form of dissociative amnesia in which the patient flees away from their home. They will have no idea of actual self
-
Dissociative identity disorder- It is a condition where the patient develops multiple personalities which can take over
– It is strongly linked to early childhood trauma e.g. sexual abuse
– Patient has amnesia for when the different personalities take over, but maybe aware of their existence
What is the management of dissociative disorder?
- Involves checking if there is an organic cause
- Psychotherapy (e.g. hypnosis) is the main line to explore trauma and recall true identity
What is cortards syndrome?
Holds the delusional belief that they are dead and do not exist
What is Charles-Bonnet syndrome syndrome?
Complex visual hallucinations with partial or severe blindness
Patients understand that the hallucinations are not really and often have insight compared to other disorders
For those experiencing CBS, knowing that they have this syndrome and not a mental illness seems to be the most comforting treatment so far, as it improves their ability to cope with the hallucinations.
What is Munchausen?
A condition where patients will produce physical or psychological symptoms to attain a patients role
- Patients can feign the symptoms, exaggerate them or deliberately hurt themselves to produce symptoms
- Typically, patients take hallucinogens, inject faeces to make abscesses and contaminate urine samples
What is malingering?
This is when a patient feigns or exaggerates their symptoms purely for a financial rewards
- Unlike Munchhausen syndrome, it is not to play a patient’s role but to receive compensation, personal damages or get off work
– It is not a medical diagnosis, but can lead to a large economic burden on health care systems
What is erotomania?
Belief that another person (famous/important) is in love with them
What is a grandiose delusion?
overinflated sense self worth, power, identity, believe have talent/made important discovery
What are some other types of delusion?
Jealous - spouse/sexual partner unfaithful without any concrete evidence
Persecutory - believe someone/something is mistreating/spying on/attempting to harm them, may repeatedly contact legal authorities
Somatic - physical issue/medical problem e.g. parasite, bad odour