Author: Glossary

A theory postulating that the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and other psychotic states is due to excesses in dopamine activity in various areas of the brain. This theory is based in part on observations that the antipsychotic properties of specific drugs may be related to their ability to block the action of dopamine (and hence treat…

Drugs that block or reverse the actions of dopamine by preventing dopamine from attaching to dopamine receptors. In psychiatry, dopamine antagonists (i.e., antipsychotics) have traditionally been used to treat schizophrenia. It has been hypothesized that people with schizophrenia may have an overactive dopamine system. Dopamine antagonists can help regulate this system by “turning down” dopamine…

Drugs that bind to dopamine receptors in place of dopamine and directly stimulate those receptors. Some dopamine agonists are currently used to treat parkinson’s disease.  

A catecholamine neurotransmitter found in the brain. Neuropathology involving dopaminergic systems in the brain is associated with some forms of psychosis and movement disorders. Dopamine is the primary neurotransmitter involved in the reward pathways in the brain. Consequently, drugs that increase dopamine signaling (i.e., dopamine agonists) may produce euphoric effects.  

An acetylcholinesterase inhibitor used in the treatment of dementia. Marketed under the brand name aricept. A drug used to ease Alzheimer’s disease symptoms. Donepezil (Aricept) treats confusion and memory loss in people with Alzheimer’s disease and slows disease progression. A drug only used for the symptomatic treatment of mild to moderate dementia in Alzheimer’s disease.…

Twins who develop from two separately fertilized ova. Also called fraternal twins. Twins who are not identical and not always of the same sex because they come from two different ova fertilized at the same time. Two people born at the same time to the same parents after fertilization of two separate oocytes. They may…

An anticonvulsant medication used in psychiatry as a mood stabilizer to treat bipolar disorder. Marketed under the brand name depakote.  

A medication used to reinforce alcohol abstinence in patients with alcoholism because it produces severe nausea and vomiting when the person drinks. Disulfiram inhibits alcohol dehydrogenase, an enzyme involved in alcohol metabolism in the liver, and the resultant buildup of acetaldehyde produces symptoms of nausea and vomiting, with severity depending on concentration. Patients must be…

The therapy used by the psychobiological school of psychiatry developed by Adolf Meyer (1866–1950). It entails extensive guided and directed investigation and analysis of the patient’s entire past experience, stressing assets and liabilities to make possible a constructive synthesis.