Week 8 Flashcards
What is anxiety associated with?
- Threatening situations (medical procedures involve huge amount of uncertainty)
- Thoughts of threatening situations
List what patients are anxious about?
- Anaesthesia/unconscious
- Waking during surgery
- Pain (e.g post-operative)
- Life-threatening procedures
- Post-operative outcome
- Possibility of disfigurement
- Threat of severe illness
- Outcome of test results
- Unfamiliarity of surroundings
- Physical restriction
- Loss of independence
- Being away from home
What does Kiecolt-Glaser et al. Psychological influences on surgical recovery say?
Pre-operative anxiety effects outcomes of recovery
What are patients who experience high anxiety pre-operatively more likely to have?
- More pain post-operatively
- Use more analgesic
- Stay in hospital longer
- More complications
- Anxiety & depression after surgery
What does Kiecolt-Glaser et al. Psychological influences on surgical recovery say regarding “Communication”?
Anxious patients are less likely to understand the info they are told
What does Kiecolt-Glaser et al. Psychological influences on surgical recovery say regarding “Adherence”?
Patients with anxiety are less likely to be compliant with coughing & breathing exercises (reduce likelihood of pneumonia), getting out of bed & moving around (reduce phlebitis & enhance wound healing)
What does Kiecolt-Glaser et al. Psychological influences on surgical recovery say regarding “Pain Management”?
Pre-surgery anxiety & stress can influence the type & amount of anaesthetic
How can we help patients who have anxiety?
- Increase sense of control
- Procedural info
- Behavioural instruction
- Cognitive coping
- Sensory info
- Modelling
- Counselling
What are the benefits of procedural info & behavioural instruction according to Classic study by Egbert et al. (1964)?
- Patients were discharged from hospital on average 2.7 days earlier
- Required half as much pain medication as patients receiving usual care
Describe the 4 parts to the Langer, EJ, Janis, IL & Wolfer, JA. (1975) Journal of Experimental Social Psychology experiment?
- Teaching cognitive coping
- Procedural prep info
- Cognitive coping + procedural prep info
- Control group
What are the 3 positive effects of cognitive coping?
- Less analgesics
- Trend for early discharge (not statistically sign)
- Able to cope with discomfort better
Describe the 4 parts to the Kulik, JA & Mahler, HI. (1989) Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin experiment?
- Room with another pre-op patients, same surgery
- Room with another pre-op patient, different surgery
- Room with a post-op patient, same surgery
- Room with a post-op patient, different surgery
What are the 3 positive effects of having a room with post-op patient from same/different surgeries?
- Released more quickly
- Less anxious post-op
- More ambulatory post-op (movement)
Describe anxiety & non-surgical procedures?
- Can be just as anxiety-provoking & distressing
- Techniques used for surgery patients can also be beneficial to prepare patients for non- surgical procedures
What 2 ways can you prepare a patients for endoscopy?
- Procedural & sensory info- describing endoscopy procedure & sensations to expect
- Behavioural instructions- teaching how to breathe & swallow to facilitate throat anaesthetisation & tube passage
What does the 2 methods to prepare a patient for endoscopy do?
- Sensory information reduced distress
- Combination of coping information & behavioural instructions reduced distress & reduced time required for tube passage
Describe how cancer patients may experience anxiety around non-surgical procedures?
- Drug induced nausea & vomiting
- Repeated chemotherapy treatments, may also experience Anticipatory Nausea & Vomiting (ANV) before chemotherapy
- ANV may lead to discontinuing treatment
What are 3 ways to prepare a patient for a non-surgical procedure?
- Systematic desensitisation
- Information provision
- Relaxation training
What is a “Monitors” coping style?
Copes by seeking out detailed info
What is a “Blunters” coping style?
Copes by using avoidance to minimise the situation
According to a study on Women undergoing gyne exam, what happens when monitors are given little info & blunders are given a lot of info?
React negatively to the amount of info the received as evidence by their continued high pulse rates after the exam
According to a study on Women undergoing gyne exam, what happens who monitors are given more info & blunders are given low info?
Reacted more positively as evidenced by their reduction in pulse rates after the exam
What are the 2 explanations for how psychological preparation promotes recovery?
- Psychological prep –> Reduces stress –> Reduce sympathetic arousal –> Improves immunological & endocrine responses
- Preparations –> Reduced frequency & extent of maladaptive behaviours that unprepared patient can engage in (not doing breathing exercises)
What are the problems with Barbiturate drugs?
- Dependence
- Addiction
- Misuse due to highs
- Narrow therapeutic index
What 2 things are Barbiturates still used for?
- IV induction agents
2. Anti-convulsants
What are the 5 different classes of drugs for anxiolytics & sedatives?
- Antidepressants
- Benzodiazepines
- Z-drugs
- B-blockers
- Other ie. Melatonin, Sedating antihistamine
Describe Benzodiazepine drugs?
- Serendipity (librium)
- Highly lipophilic
- Well absorbed orally
- Highly protein bound (95%)
- Hepatic metabolism
- Active metabolites
- Excreted as glucoronide conjugate
What are the 5 major effects of Benzodiazepines?
- Anxiolytic- reduce anxiety (α2 & α3 )
- Hypnotic- induce sleep (α1)
- Reduce muscle tone
- Anterograde amnesia (pros&cons)
- Anticonvulsant effect
How do you administer Benzodiazepines?
- Orally or intravenously
- Not advised to be given intramuscular
What are the 2 categories of Benzodiazepines?
- Short acting- Lorazepam, Temazepam (t1/2 8-12hrs)
3. Long acting- Diazepam (t1/2 20-100hrs)
Describe the GABAa receptors?
- Pentameric
- Central ion channel pore (Chloride)
- 18 possible subunits
- 30 forms of receptor
- Some subunits location specific
- Anaesthetics & benzos allosterically activate the receptor
- Increase frequency of opening
What is sedation mediated via?
GABAa with α1 subunit
What is anxiolysis mediated via?
GABAa with α2 & α3 subunits
What is Flumazenil?
Competitive benzodiazepine antagonist
Describe Flumazenil drug?
- Short half life compared with benzodiazepines
- May precipitate agitation & seizures
- IV 100mcg increments
What are the side effects of Flumazenil?
Nausea & vomiting
Where do Z-drugs act?
Benzodiazepine receptors (very similar pharmacodynamic profile)
Give 3 examples of Z drugs?
- Zopiclone
- Zaleplon
- Zolpidem
What is the definition of Tolerance?
Physiological state characterized by decrease in effects of a drug with chronic administration
Describe the tolerance of Benzodiazepines?
Tolerance develops quickly for sedative effects & slowly for anxiolytic & anticonvulsant effects
What are the 4 mechanisms for tolerance?
- Neuro-adaptive process
- Desensitisation of inhibitory GABA receptors
- Sensitisation of (excitatory) NMDA receptors
- Adaptions on different time scale
When/How does drug dependence occur?
- Induces a rewarding experience
- Drug taking becomes compulsive
- Psychological/ Physical dependence
- Genetic factors
Describe the feelings of withdrawal?
- Increased anxiety, onset / exacerbation of depression
- Disturbed sleep
- Pain, stiffness, muscular aches
- Convulsions
What is withdrawal a result of?
Physical dependence (occur after relatively short courses of treatment)
What are Anxiolytics?
Medication/other intervention that inhibits anxiety
What are the clinical roles for sedative & anxiolytic agents/ when would you prescribe them?
- Enable uncomfortable diagnostic & therapeutic procedures to be carried out
- Management of acute alcohol withdrawal
- Other: anticonvulsant
What would you prescribe for management of acute alcohol withdrawal?
Chlordiazepoxide 1-2 week reducing regime
What is the CAGE questionnaire?
- Have you ever felt you should Cut down your drinking?
- Annoyed by other people criticizing?
- Felt Guilty about drinking?
- Taken a drink in morning to steady nerves or ease a hangover (Eye- opener)?
What are the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal?
- Insomnia / anxiety/ restlessness/ agitation
- Tremor
- Nausea & vomiting
- Sweating/Palpitations
- Hallucinations auditory /visual/tactile
- Seizures
What are 4 investigations suggestive of chronic alcohol consumption?
- Raised MCV
- Pancytopenia (alcohol induced bone marrow suppression)
- Folate deficiency
- Prolonged prothrombin time
Describe the timeline for symptoms of alcohol withdrawal?
- May start 8hrs after drop in alcohol levels
- Peak day 2
How do you manage insomnia?
- Assessment (pain/breathlessness)
- Good sleep hygiene
- Hypnotics reserved for acutely distressed
- Caution in elderly
Why is there caution in the elderly for using hypnotics?
- Confusion
- Falls
- Slower metabolism
What is sleep hygiene?
Aims to make people more aware of behavioural, environmental & temporal factors that may be detrimental or beneficial to sleep
What should you prescribe (if you must) for insomnia?
- Short acting Benzodiazepine or Z-drug
- Lowest effective dose for shortest time
- Inform patient no repeat prescriptions & explain why
How do you manage prolonged seizures?
- O2 if available
- Longer than 5 mins IV Lorazepam
- IV not available consider rectal Diazepam or intranasal / buccal Midazolam
What should you consider/exlude in prolonged seizures?
Hypoglycaemia
Describe the management of acute anxiety?
- Guided self help: reduce caffeine & alcohol, mantras, mindfulness, worrytime
- Cognitive behavioural therapy
Should you use benzodiazepines for acute anxiety in a primary care setting?
- NO, its inappropriate for “mild”
- Indicated for short-term relief of anxiety that is severe, disabling or causing patient unacceptable distress
Describe the effect of B-blockers for managing the somatic symptoms of anxiety?
- Helps with tachycardia,
palpitations, tremor, sweating - Usually Propranolol
What are the advantages of B-blockers?
- Non-sedative
- No dependence or abuse
What is Gabapentin & Pregabalin used for?
- NICE: consider pregabalin for generalised anxiety
- Used to manage chronic pain
- But misuse / abuse
What is Melatonin?
Naturally occurring hormone synthesized in pineal gland
What are the levels of people’s melatonin throughout the day?
High levels at night, low during day
What is Melatonin secreted in response to?
Input from retina
When is Melatonin drug used?
- Children with sleep disturbance
- Licensed for insomnia > 55yrs
What are the laws on driving (March 2015)?
- Offence to drive with certain drugs above specified levels in body, whether driving is impaired or not
- Taking drugs as directed & driving not impaired= NOT breaking the law
What 3 medications can affect driving?
- Benzodiazepine
- Opioids
- Amphetamines
What are the 3 main categories of harm?
- Physical Harm
- Dependence
- Social harms
What is Doxapram?
Short acting respiratory stimulant used in respiratory failure
In what 3 scenarios would you use Doxapram?
- Post-operative respiratory depression
- Acute respiratory failure
- Neonatal apnoea
Describe Strychnine convulsant drug?
- Poison
- Powerful convulsant
- Violent extensor spasms triggered by minor sensory stimuli
- Blocks glycine receptors
What does small doses of Strychnine drug cause?
Improvement in visual & auditory acuity
What do Hallucinogen drugs (psyhchotomimetic drugs) act on?
5-HT receptors & transporters
Give 4 examples of Hallucinogen drugs?
- LSD (D-lysergic acid diethylamine)
- Psilocybin
- Mescaline
- MDMA (Ecstasy)
What are the main pharmacological effect of Hallucinogens?
- Alter perception of sights & sounds
- Hallucinations (visual, auditory, tactile or olfactory)
- Sounds perceived as visions
- Thought processes illogical & disconnected
What are “bad trips”?
- Hallucinations can take on menacing quality
- Maybe accompanied by paranoid delusions
When can “flashbacks” occur due to hallucinogens?
Weeks or months later
When can a tolerance to Hallucinogen’s develop?
Quickly (plus cross-talk between drugs ie. LSD causes higher doses of MDMA needed for the same effects)
Describe the withdrawal of Hallucinogen’s?
No physical withdrawal syndrome, psychological effects i.e. “flashbacks & psychosis
What are the risks for Hallucinogen’s?
- Injury & accidental death whilst intoxicated
- Poisoning due to mistaken identity
- Adrenergic effects with LSD
- GI effects with Psilocybin
Describe Phencyclidine (PCP, “Angel Dust”) dissociative anaesthetic?
- Synthesised as possible IV general anaesthetic
- Disorientation & hallucinations
Describe the use of Ketamine?
Induction & maintenance of anaesthesia
What effects do Phencyclidine & Ketamine dissociative anaesthetics have?
- Resemble other psychotomimetic drugs
- Analgesic
- Stereotyped motor behaviour like Amphetamine
- Can give “bad trip” as LSD
What are both Phencyclidine & Ketamine?
NMDA receptor antagonists
Describe the tolerance of dissociative anaesthetics?
Rapid over regular, repeated doses
Describe the dependence of dissociative anaesthetics?
- Physical & psychological
- Withdrawal
syndromes with PCP
Describe the risks of dissociative anaesthetics?
- Accidents/loss of control/automatic behaviour
- PCP: hyperthermia, convulsions
- Ketamine: overdose with heart attack/respiratory failure (rare)
What is Cannabis (cannabis sativa, indica)?
- Psychotomimetic drug
- Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) & 11-hydroxy-THC
Give 5 examples of psychomotor stimulants?
- Amphetamine (speed)
- Dextroamphetamine
- Methylamphetamine (crystal meth)
- Methylphenidate (ritolen)
- 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)
What are the main effects of psychomotor stimulants?
- Locomotor stimulation
- Euphoria & excitement
- Insomnia
- Anorexia (diminishes with continued use)
- Stereotypic behaviour (chronicuse)
What are the behavioural effect of Amphetamine probably due to?
Release of dopamine rather than noradrenaline
Describe the effects of Amphetamine?
- Become confident, hyperactive & talkative
- Sex drive enhanced
- Fatigue (both physical & mental) reduced
- Doesn’t enhance mental performance, just ability to concentrate for longer
Describe the mode of action of Amphetamines?
- Competitive inhibitors of monoamine uptake (noradrenaline, dopamine)
- Inhibit MAO at high concentrations
- Cause NET to work in “reverse”
What are the 3 dopamine pathways in the brain & what do they do?
- Nigrostriatal- Motor control
- Mesolimbic & Mesocortical- behavioural effects
- Tuberohypophyseal system- endocrine function
What are the 2 noradrenaline pathways in the brain & what do they do?
- Locus coeruleus- wakefulness, alterness
2. Medulla/hypothalamus- Blood pressure regulation
What are the 2 serotonin pathways in the brain & what do they do?
- Locus coeruleus- sensory signals
2. Raphe nuclei- sleep, wakefulness, mood
Describe the tolerance of Amphetamines?
Rapid tolerance to euphoric & anorexic effects, slowly for other effects
Describe the dependance of Amphetamines?
Moderate dependence potential due to euphoria
Describe “Amphetamine psychosis”?
- If taken repeatedly over a few days
- Almost indistinguishable from acute schizophrenic attack
- Stereotypic behaviour
- After cessation, period of deep sleep
What can the subject feel after cessation of Amphetamines?
Lethargic, depressed, anxious & often very hungry
What are the risks of Amphetamines?
- Vascular accidents (tachycardias, arrhythmias, ↑ BP)
- Cerebral convulsions & coma
- Excitation syndrome (hyperthermia/tachycardia)
- Anorexia
- Chronic paranoid psychosis
- Cognitive impairment
- Personality/mood
What is Khat (Catha edulis)?
- Psychomotor stimulant
- Contains cathinone, an amphetamine-like stimulant
What is Nicotine (Nicotiana tabacum)?
Psychomotor stimulant
Where does Cocaine comes from?
Leaves of South American shrub, Erythroxylum Coca
What is Cocaine?
Potent inhibitor of catecholamine uptake into nerve terminals (esp. dopamine)
What are the effects of Cocaine (which resemble Amphetamines)?
- Euphoria (related to ↓ dopamine & 5-HT reuptake)
- Alertness & wakefulness
- Increased confidence & strength
- Increased sexual feelings
- Indifference to concerns/cares
How can cocaine be administered?
- Readily absorbed by many routes
- Nasal damages the mucosa & septum
- Free-base form (‘crack’) can be smoked
Describe the tolerance of cocaine?
Occurs rapidly
Describe the dependance of cocaine?
- Physical dependence mild
- Strong psychological
dependence occurs
What are the ACUTE risks of cocaine?
- Cardiovascular (↑BP, tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, heart attack, respiratory arrest, stroke)
- Muscle spasms, tremor
- Hyperthermia
- Seizures, headaches, excited delirium
What are the CHRONIC risks of cocaine?
- Heart attacks (furring of coronary arteries)
- Malnutrition & weight loss
- Decreased libido & impotence
- Personality/mood
- “Toxic syndrome”
What is “toxic syndrome” from chronic cocaine similar to?
Acute paranoid schizophrenia
What contains Methylxanthines?
Tea, coffee, cocoa
What are the main 2 Methylxanthines?
- Caffeine
2. Theophylline
Describe the effects of Caffeine & Theophylline (Methylxanthines)?
- Mild CNS stimulants
- Diuretics
- Cardiac muscle stimulants
- Smooth muscle relaxants (esp. bronchial)
What are the main psychological effects of Methylxanthines?
Reduce fatigue & improve mental performance without any euphoria
Methylxanthines develop what to a small extent?
Tolerance & habituation
What can Theophylline be used for clinically?
Bronchodilator in severe asthma attacks
What do all endocrine glands NOT have?
Ducts
What is an endocrine secretion?
Hormones diffuse directly into capillaries to act on distant target organs
What is a paracrine secretion?
Hormones secreted & act more locally
What is a autocrine secretion?
Hormones which act on themselves
Endocrine glands are very ______?
Vascular (fenestrated capillaries)
Describe the 3 different locations of endocrine glands?
- Discrete organs (thyroid, pituitary, adrenals)
- Associated with other tissues (pancreas)
- Scattered within complex organs (ovary, kidney, gut)
List the major endocrine glands?
- Pineal
- Hypothalamus
- Pituitary
- Thyroid
- Parathyroid
- Thymus
- Adrenal
- Pancreas
- Ovary
- Testis
What are the 3 factors controlling hormone release from endocrine glands?
- Humoral
- Neural
- Hormonal
What are the hormones in the hypothalamus-pituitary axis?
Endocrine & Neuroendocrine hormones
What are the hormones in the adrenal cortex/medulla?
- Glucocorticoids
- Mineralocorticoids
- Catecholamines
What are the hormones in the thyroid?
- Thyroid hormones
- Calcitonin
What is the hormone in the parathyroids?
Parathyroid hormone (PTH)
What are the hormones in the pancreas?
- Insulin
- Glucagon
- Pancreatic polypeptide
- Somatostatin
What are the hormones in the gastrointestinal tract?
- CCK, GIP, GLP 1&2
- Glicentin, Gastrin
- Bombesin
- Secretin, VIP
- Substance P
- Guanylins
What is the hormone in the pineal gland?
Melatonin
What is the hormone in the thymus?
Thymopoietin
What are the hormone in the gonads (testes/ovaries)?
- Sex steriods
- Inhibins
- Activins
What are the hormones in the heart?
- Natriuretic peptides
- ANP
- BNP
What are the hormone in the liver?
- Insulin-like growth factors
- Leptin
- Angiotensinogen
What are the hormones in the kidney?
- Erythropoietin
- Renin
What is the hormone in adipose tissue?
Leptin