Download Ch. 19 S. 5 Biological Therapy

Ch. 19 S. 5 : Biological
Therapy
Obj: Describe the three major
biological treatments for
psychological disorders.
The methods of psychotherapy described so
far rely on verbal interactions between the
psychotherapist and the individual seeking
help.
Biological therapy, on the other hand, relies
on methods such as medication, electric
shock, and even surgery to help people
with psychological disorders.
Because these treatments are medical in
nature, they must be administered or
prescribed by psychiatrists or other
physicians.
Drug Therapy
Drug therapy is the
most widely used
biological treatment
for psychological
disorders.
Four major types of
medication are
commonly used:
• Antianxiety drugs
• Antidepressant drugs
• Lithium
• Antipsychotic drugs
• Antianxiety Drugs – also called minor
tranquilizers are used as an outpatient
treatment to help people with anxiety
disorders or panic attacks. They are also
prescribed for people who are experiencing
serious distress or tension in their lives.
These drugs work by depressing the activity
of the nervous system. They lower the heart
rate and respiration rate. They also
decrease feelings of nervousness and
tension.
Although antianxiety medications help
control they symptoms of anxiety, they are
not a permanent cure. Thus, most people
use them for a short period of time. The
longer a person takes this medication, the
less effective the drug may become.
Higher doses may be needed in order to
achieve the same effect.
The major side effects are feelings of fatigue
and possibility of developing a
dependence.
• Antidepressant Drugs – People who
suffer from major depression, eating
disorders or panic disorders are all treated
with this type of drug.
They work by increasing the amount of one
or both of the neurotransmitters
norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and
serotonin. They tend to be most helpful in
reducing the physical symptoms of
depression. They increase activity levels
and reduce the severity of eating and
sleeping problems.
In order to work effectively, antidepressants
must build up in the body to a certain level.
They may take anywhere for several days
to a few weeks. Severely depressed people
who are at risk of suicide are sometimes
hospitalized until the meds reach the level
required to improve their mood. This is to
prevent them from ODing, or having
adverse reactions such as escalated heart
rate and excessive weight gain.
These meds are believed to be reserved for
people who fail to respond to
psychotherapy.
• Lithium – The ancient Greeks and Romans
may have been the first people to use this
metal to treat psychological disorders.
Today, lithium carbonate, a salt of the metal
lithium, is given in tablet form to help people
with bipolar disorder. It seems to flatten out
their cycles of mania and depression. How
it does this is not completely understood,
although it is known to affect the functioning
of several neurotransmitters.
Side effects may be shakiness, memory
impairment, and excessive thirst.
• Antipsychotic Drugs – People with
schizophrenia are likely to use this medication,
also called major tranquilizers.
They are effective for reducing agitation, delusions,
and hallucinations. Their use has enabled many
thousands of people with schizophrenia to live
outside of mental hospitals and even to hold jobs.
Schizophrenia is associated with high levels of
dopamine activity. These meds are thought to
work by blocking the activity of dopamine in the
brain.
Side effects are that prolonged use can lead to
problems in balance, coordination, and produce
tremors and twitches.
Electroconvulsive Therapy
Electroconvulsive therapy
(ECT), commonly called
electric-shock therapy, was
introduced as a treatment for
psychological disorders in
the 1930s.
Before ECT is given,
anesthesia is administered to
render the person
unconscious throughout the
procedure. Then an electric
current is passed through the
person's brain. The electric
current produces convulsions
throughout the body. In some
cases, muscle relaxant drugs
are given to prevent injury
during the convulsions.
When ECT was first introduced, it was used
for many psychological disorders,
including schizophrenia. However, once
antipsychotic drugs became available,
ECT was used much less often. In fact, in
1990 the Am. Psychiatric Association
recommended that that ECT be used
primarily for people with major depression
who do not respond to antidepressant
drugs.
ECT is controversial for many reasons. For
one thing, many professionals are
distressed by the thought of passing an
electric shock through a person’s head
and producing convulsions. There are also
side effects, including memory problems,
but this is usually temporary.
Despite the controversies surrounding it,
ECT appears to help many people who do
not respond to antidepressant drugs.
Psychosurgery
Psychosurgery is brain surgery that is
performed to treat psychological
disorders. The best-known
technique, prefrontal lobotomy,
has been used to reduce the
agitation and violence of people
with severe psychological
disorders.
The procedure involves cutting nerve
pathways in the brain between the
prefrontal lobes and the thalamus.
However, the treatment produces
several serious side effects;
distractibility, reduced learning
ability, overeating, apathy, social
withdrawal, seizures, reduced
creativity, and occasionally even
death.
Because of the side effects of the surgery and
the availability of antipsychotic drugs,
lobotomies are now performed only rarely.
Drug therapies, and to a limited extent ECT,
seem to be effective for some psychological
disorders that do no respond to
psychotherapy. It is important to realize,
however, that medications and electric
shocks cannot help a person develop more
rational ways of thinking or solve
relationship problems. Changes such as
these are likely to require psychotherapy.