Substance Use & Addictive Disorders Flashcards
* Alcohol use disorder * Sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic use disorder * Stimulant use disorder * Inhalant use disorder * Opioid use disorder * Hallucinogen use disorder * Cannabis use disorder * Non-substance addiction
Substance Use Disorder
- Use of the substance interferes w/ability to fulfill role obligations
- Attempts to cut down or control use fail
- Intense craving for the substance
- Excessive amt of time spent trying to procure the substance or recover from its use
- Use causes dysfunctional interpersonal relationships as well as social isolation; impairment results in risky behaviors
- Despite awareness of physical & psychological problems, use continues
- Use of the substance causes the person difficulty w/interpersonal relationships or to become socially isolated
- The person engages in hazardous activities when impaired by the substance
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Is a primary chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, & related circuitry where a dysfunction in these circuits is connected to an individual pathologically pursuing reward and/or relief by substance use & other behaviors
Addiction
Addiction: Evident when:
___ occurs - substance-specific sx’s occur upon discontinuation of use
Withdrawal
___ develops - the amt req’d to achieve the desired effect increases
Tolerance
Substance-Induced Disorders
- Development of a reversible syndrome of sx’s following excessive use of a substance
- Disruption in physical & psychological functioning
- Direct effect on the CNS
- Judgment is disturbed & social & occupational functioning is impaired; disturbed judgment can also result in maladaptive behavior
Substance Withdrawal
Occurs upon abrupt reduction or discontinuation of a substance used regularly over a prolonged period of time
Substance-specific syndrome includes:
- Clinically significant physical signs & sx’s
- Psychological changes - disturbances in thinking, feeling, & behavior
Predisposing Factors
- Biological
- Psychological
- Sociocultural
- There’s no single theory that can explain the etiology of substance abuse
Biological Factors
- Hereditary factors have been implicated especially in terms of alcoholism; alcohol may produce morphine-like substances in the brain
- Evidence supports the idea that changes in brain structure & brain neurochemistry occur in the process of developing addiction
> These pathways are responsible for sensing pleasure and reward. Once activated, they’re believed to be responsible for pleasurable sensations assoc w/drugs as well as creating a memory that triggers desire for repeated use of the drugs
Psychological Factors
Developmental influences:
* A punitive superego @ the oral stage of psychosexual development; this is when the individual w/a punitive superego turns to drugs to diminish unconscious anxiety & it increases feelings of power & self-worth
Personality factors:
* Certain personality traits have been assoc w/an increased tendency towards addictive behaviors. These include low self-esteem, freq depression, passivity, antisocial personality traits, the inability to relax or to defer gratification & the inability to communicate effectively are common in individuals who abuse substances
Cognitive factors:
* Irrational thinking patterns have long been identified as a central problem in addiction
Sociocultural Factors
Social Learning:
* Modeling & imitation can be observed from an early childhood onward
* The family appears to be an important influence in relation to substance use
Conditioning:
* Many substances create a pleasurable experience that encourages the user to repeat it
* The environment can also serve as condition. If the environment is seen as pleasurable, substance use usually increases
Cultural and ethnic influences
* We know that factors within an individual’s culture can help establish patterns of substance use by molding attitudes, influencing patterns of consumption based on cultural acceptance, and determining the availability of substances
- There’s a high incidence of use within the American Indian & Alaskan Native cultures as well as northern Europeans, esp Ireland (this is esp true for the use of alcohol)
Alcohol Use Disorder: Profile of the Substance
- ETOH - CNS depressant
- BAC of ___% is considered legal intoxication
- The body burns alcohol @ a rate of about 0.5 oz per hr
- Other factors that influence the effects of ETOH include an individual’s size, a full or empty stomach, as well as emotional stress or fatigue
0.08%
Patterns of ETOH use progression
Phase I: pre-alcoholic phase
Phase II: early alcoholic phase
Phase III: crucial phase
Phase IV: chronic phase
! Heavy drinking contributes to heart disease, cancer, and stroke
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- Characterized by emotional & physical disintegration
- Emotional disintegration is evidenced by profound helplessness & self-pity; impairment may result in psychosis; life-threatening physical manifestations may be evident in virtually every system of the body
- Unmanaged withdrawal from alcohol results in a terrifying syndrome of sx’s that include hallucinations, tremors, convulsions, severe agitation, & panic. Depression & ideas of suicide are not uncommon
- For long-term heavy drinkers, abrupt withdrawal of alcohol can be fatal
Phase IV: chronic phase
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- Begins w/blackouts, which are brief periods of amnesia that occur during or immediately following a period of drinking
- Alcohol is now required by the person
Phase II: early alcoholic phase
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- Characterized by the use of alcohol to relieve everyday stress & tensions of life
Phase I: pre-alcoholic phase
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- Individual has lost the ability to choose whether or not to drink; an addiction is clearly evident
- Binge drinking is common; these episodes are characterized by sickness, loss of consciousness, squalor, or degradation
- Individual is extremely ill; anger & aggression are common manifestations
- By this phase of the illness, it’s not uncommon for the individual to have lost their job, have problems w/their marriage, family, friends, and most especially, self-respect
Phase III: crucial phase
Effects on the Body
- Peripheral neuropathy
- Alcoholic myopathy
- Wernicke’s encephalopathy
- Korsakoff’s psychosis
- At low doses, alcohol produces relaxation, loss of inhibitions, lack of concentration, drowsiness, slurred speech, & sleep
- Chronic abuse results in multi-system physiological impairments
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Results in pain, burning, tingling, or prickly sensations of all extremities
Researchers believe it’s the direct result of deficiencies in the B vitamins, particularly thiamine
This is reversible w/abstinence from alcohol & restoration of nutritional deficiencies but permanent muscle wasting & paralysis can occur w/cont’d use
Peripheral neuropathy
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Is identified by a syndrome of confusion, loss of recent memory, & confabulation in alcoholics; is frequently encountered in those w/another assoc sx
Korsakoff’s psychosis
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Represents the most serious form of thiamine deficiency in alcoholics
Sx’s include paralysis of the ocular muscle, diplopia, ataxia, somnolence, & stupor
If thiamine replacement therapy is not undertaken quickly, death will ensue
Wernicke’s encephalopathy
→ In the US, the 2 disorders are usually considered together & are called Wernicke-Korsakoff’s syndrome
✔ Treatment is w/parenteral or oral thiamine replacement
In acute alcoholic myopathy, the individual experiences sudden onset of muscle pain, swelling, & weakness
- These sx’s are usually generalized but pain & swelling may selectively involve calves or other muscle groups
Chronic alcoholic myopathy includes gradual wasting & weakness in skeletal muscles
- Neither the pain or tenderness or the elevated muscle enzymes seen in acute myopathy are evident in the chronic condition
Alcoholic cardiomyopathy
- Generally, r/t CHF or arrhythmia
- Sx’s incl dec exercise tolerance, tachycardia, dyspnea, edema, palpitations, & a non-productive cough
- Changes may be observed by ECG & CHF may be evident on cxr; treatment is total, permanent abstinence from alcohol
- Treatment of CHF may incl rest, oxygen, receiving digoxin, sodium restriction, & diuretics
→ Death rate is high for individuals w/symptomatology
Esophagitis
- Inflammation & pain in the esophagus
- Occurs b/c of the toxic effects of alcohol on the esophageal mucosa
- It occurs b/c of freq vomiting assoc w/alcohol use
Gastritis
- The effects of alcohol on the stomach incl inflammation of the stomach lining characterized by epigastric distress, nausea, vomiting, & distention
- Alcohol breaks down the stomach’s protective mucosal barrier, allowing hydrochloric acid to erode the stomach wall
- Damage to blood vessels may also result in hemorrhage
Pancreatitis
- May be acute or chronic
- Acute pancreatitis usually occurs shortly after binge drinking, & sx’s incl constant, severe epigastric pain, nausea, vomiting, & abd distention
- The chronic condition leads to pancreatic insufficiency which results in fatty stools, malnutrition, wt loss, & DM
Alcoholic hepatitis
- Inflammation of the liver c/b long term heavy alcohol use
- Sx’s incl large or tender liver, n/v, lethargy, anorexia, elevated WBC count, fever, & jaundice
- Ascites & wt loss may be evident in more severe cases
- Treatment incl strict abstinence from alcohol, proper nutrition, & rest
! The individual can experience complete recovery
Cirrhosis of the liver or hepatic encephalopathy
- Cirrhosis of the liver may be c/b anything that results in chronic injury to the liver but is also end-stage of alcoholic liver dz & results from chronic long term alcohol use
- Widespread destruction of liver cells which are replaced by fibrous (scar) tissue
- Sx’s incl n/v, anorexia, wt loss, abd pain, jaundice, edema, anemia, & blood coag abnormalities
- Treatment is also abstinence from alcohol, correction of malnutrition, & supportive care to prevent complications of dz
Effects on the Body cont’d
Complications of cirrhosis of the liver
* Portal hypertension
* Ascites
* Esophageal varices
* Hepatic encephalopathy
- Leukopenia
- Thrombocytopenia
- Sexual dysfunction
Use During Pregnancy: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)
- Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) includes problems w/learning, memory, attention span, communication, vision, & hearing
- Alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder
- Alcohol-related birth defects
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Occurs at blood alcohol levels between 100-200 mg/dL
- Sx’s incl disinhibition of sexual & aggressive impulses, mood lability, impaired judgement, impaired social or occupational functioning, slurred speech, incoordination, unsteady gait, nystagmus, & flushed face
! Death has been reported at levels ranging from 400-700
Alcohol intoxication
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Incidence of reoccurrence is high, increase risk for seizures
- Occurs in about 1%
Alcohol withdrawal delirium
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Occurs within 4-12 hrs of cessation of or reduction in heavy & prolonged alcohol use
- These incl a coarse tremor of hands, tongue, & eyelids; n/v; malaise; weakness; tachycardia; sweating; elevated BP; anxiety; depressed mood; irritability; transient hallucinations or illusions; headache & insomnia
Alcohol withdrawal
Sedative, Hypnotic, or Anxiolytic Use Disorder: Profile of the substance
- Incl barbiturates, non-barbiturate hypnotics, anti-anxiety agents; also, club drugs & date rape drugs
- CNS depressants are additive w/one another & w/the behavioral state of the user
- Physiological & psychological addiction
- Cross-tolerance & cross-dependence may exist between various CNS depressants
Effects on the Body
- Effects on sleep & dreaming
- Respiratory depression
- Cardiovascular effects
- Renal function
- Hepatic effects
- Body temperature
- Sexual functioning
Sedative, hypnotic, or anxiolytic ___
- Onset of sx’s depends on the half-life of the drug
- Severe cessation from CNS depressants can be life-threatening
withdrawal