PS101 Chapter Notes - Chapter 16: Tardive Dyskinesia, Atypical Antipsychotic, Typical Antipsychotic
Document Summary
Beginning in about 1955, schizophrenics were frequently prescribed antipsychotic drugs. Classic antipsychotic drugs include thorazine, mellaril and haldol. However patients experiencing negative symptoms get little relief from the classic antipsychotic drugs. New generation drugs include clozaril, risperdal and zyprexa. These help patients who do not respond to typical antipsychotics as well as some with negative symptoms such as apathy, diminished affect and poverty of speech. Drugs particularly effective for schizophrenics who have peristent suicidal thoughts of who engage in self-injurious behaviours. Reduce symptoms within 1-8 weeks, to lesser or greater degrees from one individual to another, about. Thought to work by blocking dopamine receptors thereby blocking dopamine activity at the receptor sites. Dopamine hypothesis does not necessarily argue for more dopamine but rather for more activity at receptor sites. Atypical antipsychotics affect both dopamine and serotonin activity. Determining a single course of treatment for a given patient is virtually impossible.
