Psychotropic drug

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

Decrease in Erythrocyte:Plasma Lithium Ratio by Concurrent Administration of Psychotropic Drugs and Lithium in Mice

Abstract: 1. Previous studies paying attention to concurrent use of lithium (Li+) with a neuroleptic were not done under constant and controlled conditions. We were therefore encouraged to do a prospectively controlled study, presuming constant relevant factors, on concomitant use of Li+ with neuroleptic as well as other psychotropic agents. 2. The effects of concurrent administration of chlorpromazine, haloperidol, imipramine and carbamazepine with Li+ on the erythrocyte:plasma Li+ ratio and the intraerythrocyte Li+ concentration were studied in mice by using a new, direct method of measuring erythrocyte Li+ concentration. 3. All of the foregoing agents with the exception of carbamazepine were observed to significantly decrease the Li+ ratio. 4. Lack of any significant effect by carbamazepine on Li+ transport may be an indication of this drug's efficacy as a supplement in Li+ therapy of bipolar affective disorders. 5. The decrease in Li+ ratio observed with chlorpromazine, haloperidol and imipramine may be explained through the mechanism by which these drugs stabilize the cell membrane and consequently affect Li+ transport in erythrocytes. 6. Moreover, our study proves that, although the Li(+)-sodium countertransport mechanism does not exist in mice, the same interaction between Li+ and other psychotropic drugs is seen. It can be concluded that such interaction is not mediated through Li(+)-sodium countertransport. 7. It is suggested that, with concurrent use of a psychotropic drug and Li+, the amount of intraerythrocyte Li+ concentration be measured, instead of relying on the plasma Li+ concentration alone.

Exposure to intimate partner violence and parental depression increases risk of ADHD in preschool children.

Abstract: A substantial body of research has documented that exposure to childhood adversity, including witnessing intimate partner violence (IPV) and parental depression, influences millions of children annually, and is associated with elevated psycho-pathology in youth.1 However, much of the existing research is limited in ways that impede causal inference and clear clinical implications. Bauer and colleagues should be commended for their study, which found that children whose parents reported IPV and depressive symptoms before age three had increased risk of developing attention deficit hyper-activity disorder (ADHD) between 3 and 6 years of age, and children whose parents reported depressive symptoms (in the absence of IPV) were more likely to be prescribed psychotropic medications. This study overcomes many common limitations by incorporating valuable design characteristics, including: (1) a prospective design to establish temporal ordering; (2) recruitment from primary-care clinics, resulting in findings that are broadly generalisable; (3) a preschool-age sample, representing a developmental period for which prospective research is limited; (4) use of billing codes and pharmacy claims to ascertain outcomes, which avoids biases associated with parental report and (5) simultaneous consideration of IPV and parental depression, as these adversities often cluster together. This study has important implications for clinical practice because it demonstrates that simple surveillance strategies in clinics are able to identify families experiencing risk factors for mental health problems or psychotropic drug treatment in preschool-age children. Clinicians can use this information to identify families in need of intervention and children who would benefit from prevention-oriented interventions to mitigate risk for psychopathology. Future research is needed to understand whether early identification can be improved by using more robust brief screening measures. It will be important for future studies to evaluate the specificity of these findings for ADHD; it is currently unknown whether this is a developmentally specific outcome that broadens to other forms of psychopathology as children develop. Identifying the psychosocial and neurobiological mechanisms underlying these associations may facilitate the development of novel interventions.

Basic Principles of Psychotropic Drug Prescription for the Elderly

Abstract: Elderly patients pose special pharmacological problems. The combination of failing health, an aging body, and multiple drug prescriptions can alter drug effects clinicians would expect to occur in younger patients. Clinicians may also encounter problems of noncompliance of capricious compliance when treating older patients. They should be aware that elderly patients are more susceptible to psychotropic drug toxicity, severe extrapyramidal side-effects from neuroleptics, and anticholinergic side-effects from tricyclic antidepressants. Clinicians should make a complete medical evaluation and determine all of the medications an older patient is taking before they prescribe a psychotropic drug.

The Ecology of Mental Health Care in Taiwan

Abstract: This paper applied the ecology model of general medical care by White et al. to analysis of mental health services utilization within the National Health Insurance in Taiwan. The ambulatory and inpatient claims of a 200,000-person cohort in 2001 were analyzed. The yearly and monthly prevalence estimates included psychotropic drug prescription, diagnosis of mental disorders, psychiatric ambulatory visit and admission, community psychiatric rehabilitation, and certificate of chronic psychosis. The results revealed one-fourth of people had received psychotropic drugs during the year, mostly from non-psychiatrists. Besides, the elderly might be excessively exposed to psychotropic drugs, and community rehabilitation programs were underutilized.