Today’s Topic: Amphetamine dependence
On Mental Health Friday, we post, in alphabetical order, one per week, information on mental health disorders. Mental Health Friday is for informational purposes only, and is in no way meant to diagnose, treat or cure any disease. Please do not self diagnose and seek professional help for what ails you.
Amphetamine dependence refers to a state of psychological dependence on a drug in the amphetamine class. Dependence on amphetamines seams to be on a rise; one study has shown that drug films heavily influence the sensations of craving in drugs, something that can contribute to amphetamine dependence. Stimulants such as amphetamines and cocaine, however, do not cause physical dependence.
Signs of amphetamine dependence manifests itself in euphoria, intensification of the train of thought, speech, and movement, and an increase in the initiative and urge to move. Amphetamine use within teenagers can have lasting effects on their brain, in particular the prefrontal cortex. Amphetamine use is rising among students due to the ability to easily access prescribed stimulants like Adderall. Also, in case of chronic use, vegetative disorders soon occur such as bouts of sweating, trouble sleeping, tremor, ataxia and diarrhea; the degradation of the personality takes place relatively slowly. Tolerance is expected to develop with regular substituted amphetamine use. When substituted amphetamines are used, drug tolerance develops rapidly. Amphetamine dependence has shown to have the highest remission rate compared to cannabis, cocaine, and opiods. Severe withdrawal associated with dependence from recreational substituted amphetamine use can be difficult for a user to cope with. Long-term use of certain substituted amphetamines, particularly methamphetamine, can reduce dopamine activity in the brain.
Adderall- Prescribed Amphetamine
For amphetamine dependent individuals, psychotherapy is currently the best treatment option as no pharmacological treatment has been approved. Another treatment option for amphetamine dependence is aversion therapy based on classical conditioning module; this will combine the amphetamine with a negative thing or opposite stimulus. Treatment for amphetamines is growing at extremely high rates around the world. Psychostimulants that increase dopamine and mimic the effects of substituted amphetamines, but with lower abuse liability, could theoretically be used as replacement therapy in amphetamine dependence. However, the few studies that used amphetamine, bupropion, methylphenidate, and modafinil as a replacement therapy did not result in less methamphetamine use or craving.
Source: Wikipedia under Creative Commons License.
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