Psychopharmacology for Psychiatry Flashcards
What are the 4 main treatments in medicine?
- chemical
- electrical stimulation
- structural rearrangement
- talking therapies
What is the advantage of classifying psychiatric drugs based on their chemical structure?
each drug has a unique structure, easy to allocate data.
What is the disadvantage of classifying psychiatric drugs based on their chemical structure?
no use in clinical decision making
What is the advantage of classifying psychiatric drugs based on the disease that they treat?
easy for doctors to choose drugs as they make diagnosises
What is the disadvantages of classifying psychiatric drugs based on the disease that they treat?
- many psychiatric drugs are used in several disorders
- most disorders have multiple symptoms and may not all be treated with one drug
What is classifying psychiatric drugs based on their pharmacology?
neuroscience based nomenclature
What are the 4 different systems that drugs target?
- receptors
- neurotransmitter reuptake sites
- ion channels
- enzymes
What are some examples of drugs that block enzyme activity?
- monoamine oxidase inhibitors
- acetylcholinesterase inhibitors
- lithium
What does lithium block?
glycogen synthase kinase - for mood stability
What are some examples of drugs that block receptors (antagonists)?
- dopamine receptors
- serotonin receptors
- histamine receptors
What are monoamine oxidase inhibitors used to treat?
- anxiety
- depression
What are acetylcholinesterase inhibitors used to treat?
- dementia
What are dopamine receptor blockers used to treat?
schizophrenia
What are serotonin receptor subtype antagonists used to treat?
depression
What are histamine receptor antagonists used to treat?
sleep
What are some examples of drug agonists?
- benzodiazepines
- guanfacine
What do benzodiazepines do?
- enhance GABA
- help with sleep
What does guanfacine do?
- enhance noradrenaline
- helps with ADHD
What do reuptake site blockers do?
- block reuptake sites
- increase neurotransmitter concentration in the synapse
- enhance post-synaptic receptor activity
What are some examples of reuptake blockers?
- citalopram
- desipramine
- methylphenidate
What does citalopram do?
- enhances serotonin
- serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI)
- treats depression and anxiety
What does desipramine do?
- noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor (NRI)
- enhances noradrenaline
- treats depression
What does methylphenidate do?
- dopamine reuptake inhibitor (DRI)
- enhances dopamine
- treats ADHD
Which drugs swap reuptake site direction to enhance release?
- amfetamine (for ADHD)
What do drugs that target Ion Channels do?
block channels to reduce neuronal excitability