Psychotropic drug

About: Psychotropic drug is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 2309 publications have been published within this topic receiving 54070 citations.

Psychotropic Drugs and Their Effects on Lower Urinary Tract Function: an Update

Abstract: A psychotropic drug is defined as a drug “capable of affecting the mind, emotions, and behavior; denoting drugs used in the treatment of mental illnesses” (Medical Dictionary for the Health Professions and Nursing 2012). Use of these drugs can lead to urinary dysfunction, but it is often difficult to delineate whether urinary dysfunction is a direct/indirect result of drug use or secondary to an unrelated concurrent condition. This situation can therefore result in diagnostic or management dilemmas for urologists, psychiatrists, and primary care physicians. This article reviews the literature published in the last 3 years, and provides an update on the desirable and undesirable effects of psychotropic drugs on lower urinary function. Duloxetine is an antidepressant with efficacy in the treatment of stress urinary incontinence. In addition, duloxetine and desipramine have been proposed in the treatment of overactive bladder. Laboratory research into potential therapies which target the role of neurotrophins in lower urinary tract function is in progress. Narcotic analgesia, several antipsychotics, antidepressant, anticonvulsant, and stimulant medications are associated with urinary retention. Several antidepressants have been associated with nocturnal enuresis. Furthermore, ketamine is known to induce storage symptoms, with reduction in bladder capacity. Lower urinary tract symptom (LUTS)-causing drugs are associated with polypharmacy, and elderly patients are particularly susceptible to adverse events due to pharmacotherapy. Awareness of psychotropic drug side effects and rationalization of their use is important to avoid undesirable outcomes. When patients with bothersome LUTS who are on psychotropic drugs fail to benefit from simple first-line treatments for LUTS, clinicians should be mindful that the psychotropic drug may indeed be the cause of LUTS and seek to liaise with the patient’s psychiatrist or primary care physician to discuss reasonable alternatives.

Monitoring of the amphetamine-like substances in dietary supplements by LC-PDA and LC–MS/MS

Abstract: Recently, amphetamine-like substances derived from the β-phenylethylamine core structure have been detected in dietary supplements. Especially, β-methylphenylethylamine (BMPEA), an amphetamine isomer, has been found in dietary supplements labeled as containing Acacia rigidula. The U. S. Food and Drug Administration determined that BMPEA is not naturally present in food and does not meet the statutory definition of a dietary ingredient. In addition, BMPEA has been classified as a psychotropic drug in South Korea and a doping substance by the World Anti-Doping Agency. The aim of this study was to determine whether dietary supplements contained amphetamine and amphetamine-like substance, including β-phenylethylamine (β-PEA) and BMPEA using LC-PDA and LC–MS/MS. In 10 of 110 samples, illegally added compounds were detected in the following ranges; β-PEA 1.4–122.0 mg/g and BMPEA 4.7–37.6 mg/g. This study will contribute to enhancement of food safety in the South Korea.

Hormones Gender and the Aging Brain: The Endocrine Basis of Geriatric Psychiatry

Abstract: List of contributors Preface Acknowledgements Part I. Overview: 1. Summary chapter. The endocrine basis of geriatric psychiatry: an integrative approach John E. Morley 2. Overview of steroids in the aging brain Loretta M. Flanagan-Cato Part II. Hormones and Mental Health in the Elderly: 3. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in aging: preclinical and clinical studies John W. Kasckow, Thomas D. Geracioti Jr, Marta Pisarska, Ajit Regmi, Dewleen G. Baker and James J. Mulchahey 4. The hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis Gabriel K. Tsuboyama 5. Estrogen and depression in aging women Mary F. Morrison and Kathryn Tweedy 6. The role of testosterone in male depression Stuart N. Seidman and Steven P. Roose 7. Dehydroepiandrosterone in aging and mental health Owen M. Wolkowitz, Patricia D. Kroboth, Victor I. Reus and Tanya J. Fabian 8. Sex hormones, cognition and dementia in the elderly Kristine Yaffe 9. Effects of estrogen on basal forebrain cholinergic neurons and cognition: implications for brain aging and dementia in women Robert B. Gibbs 10. Gender and schizophrenia Laurie A. Lindamer, M. Jackuelyn Harris, Julie Akiko Gladsjo, Robert Heaton, Jane S.Paulsen, Shelley C. Heaton and Dilip V. Jeste 11. Sex steroids and anxiety disorders Teresa A. Pigott 12. Gender and hormonal factors in pain and pain inhibition Wendy F. Sternberg Part III. Effects of Hormones and Behavior on Immune Function: 13. Estrogens, stress and psychoneuroimmunology in women over the lifespan Mary H. Burleson, Susan Robinson-Whelan, Ronald Glaser and Janice K. Kiecolt-Glaser 14. Gender differences in immune function at the cellular level Eva Redei and Suresh G. Shelat Part IV. Hormones and Gender Differences in Psychotropic Drug Metabolism: 15. Gender differences in psychotropic drug metabolism Bruce G. Pollock 16. The influence of progesterone on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of gamma-aminobutyric acid-active drugs Patricia D. Kroboth and James W. McAuley Index.

Is retirement beneficial or harmful to mental health

Abstract: Work careers have been extended in many countries by lifting up the statutory old-age retirement age. Since it has been estimated that only about half of the workforce maintain work ability on a moderate level after some 63–65 years (1, 2) the discussion on an appropriate statutory retirement age has increased focus on the possible health effects of the transition to retirement. The discussion on possible changes in mental health has been especially interesting. Several recent prospective studies on workers’ mental health trajectories prior and after transition to retirement seem to suggest that retirement could be beneficial for mental health (3–5), but the evidence is not consistent. In this issue of the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health, Laaksonen et al (6) examined trajectories of mental health five years before and five years after both old-age and disability retirement using data on purchases of psychotropic drugs. The study included all employees from the City of Helsinki who had retired between 2000–2008. This new study is novel compared to earlier studies due to the examination of the association of mental health to both old-age retirement as well as permanent, partial, and temporary disability retirement. Also, the use of different psychotropic drug types at 3-month intervals was used as an objective indicator of time-related changes in mental health. The results show that old-age retirement was unrelated to purchases of psychotropic drugs, but there was a constant increase in the use of these drugs with no clear change at the time of the retirement. Among disability retirees, psychotropic medication increased steeply before retirement. After disability retirement, purchases of antidepressants decreased slightly, while those of hypnotics and sedatives increased. The changes were largest among those who retired due to mental disorders and among non-manual employees. The steep increase in antidepressant use before disability retirement, as well as the modestly decreased use of them after retirement is in line with the results published by Oksanen et al (5) from the Finnish Public Sector Study. A new finding is that the steepest increase in the pre-retirement use of psychotropic drugs took place among the temporary retirement group. In Finland, insurance companies require a test period of pharmacological treatment before allowing disability retirement. Up to now, no similar requirements have been made for work modifications or other workplace-related interventions. Since the use of psychotropic medication increased already some five years before disability retirement, there should be several years time to consider interventions other than pharmacological ones. Based on prospective studies, increases in job control, social support, and communication in the working place are promising candidates to decrease the risk for disability pension (7–9). However, intervention studies related to work-related factors to prevent mental disorders among aging workers are very few (10, 11). Based on the French GAZEL cohort, old-age retirement was associated with a substantial reduction in mental fatigue, depressive symptoms, and insomnia (3, 4). Similarly, the Finnish Public Sector Study reported a decrease in antidepressant use after retirement among old-age retirees (5). In the Laaksonen et al study, there was an overall steady increase in the purchases of all psychotropic drugs among old-age retirees consisting mainly of an increase in the use of hypnotics and sedatives and no change in the use of antidepressants. The discrepancies between the studies are rather surprising and are probably due to national or methodological differences. Some of the difference could be due to the age of the statutory retirees. The French statutory retirees were almost 10 years younger – 72% were 53–57 years – while the old-age retirement age in the two Finnish studies was normally 63–65 years. The subjects of the two Finnish studies represent municipal workers, and the samples are thus rather similar. However, data on the use of medication in the Laaksonen et al study (6) was collected from a later period (2000–2008) than the Oksanen et al study (5) (1994–2005). The latter also required the use of ≥30 daily doses in each year in order to classify the use of antidepressant. Laaksonen et al (6) had a more sensitive measure for the use of the drugs by simply calculating the mean use of different type of psychotropic drugs during each of the 3-month intervals. The use of sedative antidepressants increased rapidly in Finland from 1999–2009 (12), and there has also been an increasing tendency to use smaller amounts of antidepressants for insomnia and anxiety disorders. It is thus plausible that the generally increased use of antidepressants in Finland could explain the non-decreasing steady trend in the use of antidepressants in the later study of Laaksonen et al (6). Nevertheless, the results suggest that it is not always true that old-age retirement is beneficial to mental health. This obviously depends on work and health-related factors, disability retirement being most often beneficial for workers with mental disorders. In some cases, the workplace can be a valuable resource-building environment for mental health (13).