Types of drugs, their actions and patterns Flashcards
What factors effect drug dependance?
- Person (age, gender, health)
- Drug (how it’s taken, amount, frequency, duration)
- Environment (social factors)
Why is intravenous drug use considered more harmful than other routes of administration? (needle into vein)
- Rapid onset effect
- Infections from needles at site/through blood or through sharing
What are Pharmacokinetics?
- what the body does to the drug
How do Pharmacodynamics work?
- what the drug does to the body’
Describe the pharmacokinetic process
- Absorption: via skin, oral (small intestine -> liver -> circulation), smoked (mouth/lung lining -> circulation), IV (direct to circulation)
- Distribution: organs with high blood flow first (brain), fat, muscles and skin later
What is the most effective drug?
Smoking as it goes straight to the lungs
Describe the pharmacodynamics process
- Dependance
- Drug tolerance (less affect)
- Withdrawal
- Cross-dependence (one drug takes place of another to continue dependance)
- Agonist effect: decrease or inhibition of the action of a neurotransmitter
- Dopamine - Neurotransmitter related to reward/pleasure
What is the pharmacokinetic half life?
- Time for drug in blood to reduce by 50%
- Short half life/short action more likely to use again sooner
What is pharmacokinetic metabolism?
- mostly via urine, some through lungs
Is it possible to sober someone up?
No
What is pharmacodynamics synapses?
- Brain - millions of pathways (nerves) similar to a mass of electrical wires
- Communication using chemical messages (neurotransmitters)
- Everything that we think, feel and do are the result of these chemical communications
What do drugs act as?
- Act by mimicking normal neurotransmitters by occupying receptor sites and sending “false” messages
What are the effects of depressants?
- Slows body down
- e.g. Alcohol, heroin
What are the effects of hallucinogens?
- Affect perception
- e.g. LSD, magic mushroom
What are the effects of stimulants?
- Speed body up
- e.g. Nicotine, caffeine, cocaine
What is the leading preventable cause of death and disability in Australia?
Tobacco
- more than illicit and alcohol combined
What happens with small doses of stimulants?
increase awareness and concentration, decrease fatigue and amplify positive moods
What happens with larger doses of stimulants?
can cause excessive activity, irritability, nervousness, insomnia, delusions and hallucinations (drug-induced psychosis), convulsions, death
What are the properties of nicotine as a stimulant?
- Dopamine agonist = reinforcing
- Glutamate agonist = stimulant
- Short term effect, small half-life
- Highly addictive
- Improves short term memory
What are the properties of meth as a stimulant?
- Significantly alters levels of dopamine (extreme agonist) and norepinephrine
- reduced appetite
- irregular heartbeat
- high blood pressure
- psychosis
What happens with small doses of depressants?
Relaxation, drowsiness and loss of inhibitions
What happens with larger doses of depressants?
Can cause loss of consciousness, respiratory inhibition, and even death
What are the properties of alcohol & benzo as a depressants?
- GABA agonist = reduces overall brain activity
- Glutamate antagonist = excitatory function reduced (effect of BZD on this system is not clear)
- benzo has a sedative effect
What are the immediate effects of alcohol as a depressants?
- happy, more relaxed, less concentration, slow reflexes, less inhibited
- disinhibited, more confidence, less coordination, slurred speech, intense moods
- confusion, blurred vision, poor muscle control
- nausea, vomiting, sleep
- coma or death
What are the long term effects of alcohol as a depressants?
- Nervous system: Brain damage (effects on memory (Korsakoff’s syndrome))
- Liver: Damaged by alcohol processing (Cirrhosis, Liver Cancer)
- Withdrawal related risks (Seizures and in worst case death)
- Other health effects (Heart, Muscles, Pancreas, Sexual organs, Skin, Stomach, Intestines etc…)
- Emotional/Psychological/Social
What effects does cannabis have on the body?
- Binds to cannabinoid receptors
- Cerebellum = Affects coordination
- Hippocampus = Affects memory
- Cerebral cortex = Affects thinking
What are the common effects of THC (in cannabis)?
▪ Feeling of intoxication ▪ Loss of coordination & concentration ▪ Increased appetite ▪ Reddened eyes ▪ Anxiety or panic ▪ Hallucinations ▪ Paranoia and confusion
What are the long term effects of heavy cannabis use?
- Health Risks = Bronchitis, lung cancer & respiratory disease and lowered sperm count / irregular menstrual cycle
- Brain function = Loss of concentration, memory & learning abilities
‘Amotivational syndrome’ = Loss of interest in activities, loss of energy, boredom, less sex drive - Severe psychotic behaviour (Drug-induced psychosis) = Causal link not certain
What effects do opioids have on the body?
- Opioid receptors – pain relief (Endorphins)
- Affects dopamine (reward effects)
- Pain relief – Physical and Psychological
- Overdose risk high
- Feelings of well-being or euphoria
- Pinpoint pupils
- Sedation
- Shallow breathing
- Nausea and vomiting
What are the long term effects of heavy opioid use?
- Health effects: Constipation, Weight loss/malnutrition, Chronic heart/lung conditions, Infertility in women, Irregular periods and Injecting risks
- Loss of sex drive
- Dependency
What is the biggest risk of opiate use?
overdose
What effects do Inhalants have on the body?
- Depressants
- All areas of the body affected
- Psychological effects (e.g., confusion)
- Hangovers and headaches can last for several days
What are the long term effects of inhalant use?
- Tremors, loss of sense of smell & hearing, problems with blood production, irregular heartbeat & damage to heart muscle, liver & kidney damage
- Forgetfulness/memory impairment, Inattention/reduced ability to think clearly & logically
- Irritability, hostility, feeling depressed or feeling persecuted
What is Korsakoff Syndrome?
- Caused by brain impairment due to chronic, heavy alcohol consumption severely depleting vitamin B1 (thiamine)
- Effects the formation of new memory
What has medicinal cannabis research found?
- Improvement in seizure disorders, pain management, nausea associated with chemotherapy, and some other conditions
- risk of psychosis and potential for misuse
What effects do Hallucinogens have on the body?
- Distort the brain’s perception of reality
- Can cause auditory, tactile, or visual hallucinations
- Include varying degrees of depression or stimulation depending on the substance
What are the effects of MDMA?
- affects serotonin
- 6-10hr half life
What are the 3 phases of MDMA/Ecstasy?
Coming up: Drug starting to take effect (Nausea, increased body temp, heart rate increase, difficulty focusing or make sense of what you are seeing, confusion, or panic)
- Plateau: Effects levelling off (Heightened sensations, increased energy, confidence, talkativeness, feeling of warmth towards others)
- Coming down: Effects wearing off (Flat, depressed, exhausted)
What are the effects of heavy Ecstasy use?
Convulsions, Vomiting, Floating sensations, Irrational or bizarre behaviour & Hallucinations
- brain damage or depression/anxiety
Why are emerging psychoactive substances sufficiently different?
To avoid detection (metabolites)
What drug has the greatest economic cost associated with its use 2004-2005?
Tobacco
What is the typical average pattern of illicit drug use over 2001, 2016 and 2019?
High in 2001
Decreases in 2016
Increases in 2019 (but not to the level it was in 2001)
In the past 12 months, what is the pattern of single drinking occasions for people in their 50s-60s?
11 or more standard drinks on a single occasion has increased
What age group is most likely to drink more than 5 drinks, 5 days per week?
60s
What age group are most likely to reduce drinking?
age 25-29
What age group are least likely to reduce drinking?
over 70
What age group are most likely to use cannabis?
In 20s, however this is decreasing
What suggests that there is an aging cohort of cannabis users?
Highest rate in the last 15 years of recent use among males in their 40s, 50s and over 60
What is the trend of recent ecstasy use?
use has generally decreased among younger age group (14-29) but remained similar for people over 30
What is the trend for cannabis use amongst females in their 30s?
Significant increase
What age group is the misuse of pharmaceuticals most likely?
over 50s
What is the trend of meth use?
declining since it’s peak in 2001
age 20s declining
What vulnerable group is more likely to use meth?
unemployed people
What is the frequency pattern of users generally?
those using are using more frequently
- mainly ice and injecting
What drugs did the Australian Drug Trends 2020 Preliminary Findings report had increased in price?
Crystal meth, heroin and cannabis
What trend has been established for amphetamine use?
- Use is declining
- more likely to be present in a drug-induced death
Emerging Psychoactive Substances have found what trend in use?
- Increase in lifetime use from 2013-2016 but recent use decreased in 2016 and remained stable
Recent use of shared needles for injecting drug users has…
Decreased
What geographical location had the highest rate of abstainers from alcohol in 2016?
remote and very remote areas
An increase in psychological distress levels was highest for people who..
had used ecstasy in last 12 moths then meth
What does smoking daily increase to be 2x as likely to have very high levels of?
psychological distress
What did the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program find was the highest consumed substances across all states and territories?
- Nicotine and alcohol (this is decreasing)
- Methylamphetamine continues to be the most prevalent illicit drug tested