Schizophrenia A Possible Etiology - 1590 Words

Schizophrenia: A Possible Etiology? As for me, you must know I shouldn’t precisely have chosen madness if there had been any choice. What consoles me is that I am beginning to consider madness as an illness like any other, and that I accept it as such. -in a letter to his brother Theo According to the National Institute of Mental Health, nearly 20% of the US population may suffer from a diagnosable mental illness in any given six month period (1991). Obviously the issue of mental health warrants close scrutiny, as such illness can translate into lost work days and lost dollars. From a health care perspective, many of those suffering can be relieved of their symptoms and return to normal life, so to speak. Schizophrenia,†¦show more content†¦Too strong of a signal or one given at an inappropriate time could strengthen inaccurate connections, ones that frequently don’t receive as much attention. Thus, hyperactive CA1 neurons through DA could reinforce fantasies and trivia and cause the delusions and hallucinations of paranoid schizophrenia. (Of course, the premorbid patterns would have an effect.) (Krieckhaus, Donhoe, Morgan, 1992). When does the system go awry in schizophrenia? Unlike Parkinsonism or Huntington’s, both chronic and progressive diseases, increasing evidence points to a defective neurodevelopmental process. Brain imaging techniques have exposed a variety of structural abnormalities in persons suffering from schizophrenia, and Weinberger’s monozygotic twin studies suggest that the structural differences seen in the affected twin were likely the result of developmental defects and not genetics (Kandel). Brains of schizophrenics have shown enlarged lateral ventricles (Nasralleh, 1993) that are associated with prominent prodromal symptoms (Wright, Gill, and Murray, 1993; Randel). They also have exhibited enlarged third ventricles (Nasralleh, 1993; Wright, Gill, and Murray, 1993; Kandel), present at the onset of illness and associated with both obstetric complications (see below) and prodromal symptoms (Nasralleh, 1993). Also demonstrated were hypoplasia of medial/limbic temporal structur es, especially the hippocampus, and again present at the onsetShow MoreRelatedDiagnosis For The Etiology Of Schizophrenia821 Words   |  4 PagesIn the search for the etiology of schizophrenia, several possibilities have been investigated, including psychodynamic, autoimmune, and genetic, but two have been long pitted against each other: neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative. While there is evidence for both processes, current research is more supportive of a neurodevelopmental etiology. However, schizophrenia will likely not be explained by a single process. Since the current study did not include longitudinal studies, it is difficultRead MoreA Brief Description of Schizophrenia1135 Words   |  5 Pagesschizophrenia.com schizophrenia is a complex, debilitating mental disorder that 1-2% of the world population experience. It is a disorder of the brain that affects how people think, feel, and perceive. The purpose of this paper is to explore schizophrenia, in particular its si gns, symptoms, etiology and pathophysiology, and then examine drug treatment and their mechanism of action. This will be followed by the prognosis for people with schizophrenia. Signs and Symptoms Early signs of schizophrenia includeRead MoreClinical And Clinical Research Project1344 Words   |  6 Pagescognitive deficits associated with schizophrenia. As the clinical symptoms of this disorder emerge during early adulthood, abnormal developmental processes are thought to contribute to the pathos-physiology of the disorder. It was discovered the the DA intervention of the prefrontal cortex undergoes significant change up until adulthood which leads to Finlay’s hypothesis that the abnormal development of this system may be related to the emergence of schizophrenia. Experimental and clinical researchRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Schizophrenia843 Words   |  4 Pages People who suffered from schizophrenia were once mistaken to be â€Å"dangerous† and untreatable. For this reason, they were often institutionalized and removed from society (DiRocco). The causes of this mental psychotic disorder has been much more understood over the past decade resulting in th e possibility for people with schizophrenia to live more average lives. Development of treatments, such as medication and various forms of psychotherapies, have been effective in treating symptoms and common comorbidRead MoreGlutamatergic And Gabaergic Dysfunction Case Study1517 Words   |  7 PagesGlutamatergic and GABAergic Dysfunction: Predisposing Factors in Schizophrenia? Academic consensus regarding the etiology of most mental disorders is often tough to achieve due to a myriad of polygenic effects and complex gene-environment interactions; however, certain disorders such as Schizophrenia pose even more difficulty. Schizophrenia is a psychiatric condition that is marked by various positive and negative symptoms that cause fluctuations in cognitive ability and impose distorted experiencesRead MoreThe Direct Genetic Loci Accounting For Schizophrenia s Heritability Is Still Unidentified1395 Words   |  6 Pagessome form of potential risk. Compared to other mental disorders, schizophrenia is unique to having a combination of many different environmental, genetic, and biological factors. The exact cause of the disease is still unknown, but studies such as biometric and molecular screenings have proved genetic and biological factors, combined with environmental factors, is strongly connected to the etiology of the disease. Although schizophrenia is more commonly manifested during young adulthood, scientistsRead MoreNeururopsychiatric Disorders Case Study1356 Words   |  6 PagesIntroduction Despite strong progress in our understanding of psychiatric disorders, moving away from psychological theories of unstable ego or bad mothering1 to clear physical pathologies, the exact etiology of psychiatric diseases remains elusive. The advancements in in-vivo brain imaging and micro-array studies in the past decades have revealed much about the macroscopic and microscopic physical alterations that are happening in human patients, and has put forward a new etiological candidate: myelinRead MoreA Comparison Between Schizophrenia And Bipolar Spectrum Disorder1518 Words   |  7 PagesAbstract A comparison between schizophrenia and bipolar spectrum disorder focusing on history, etiology, treatment, and symptoms of each disease will introduce the concept of the Continuum Disease Model (CDM) as a basis for further debate and discussion on the controversial designation of schizoaffective disorder (bipolar type/depressive type). The concept of a possible connection between distinct disorders is strongly disputed between many experts due to presence of manic or hypomanic episodes asRead MoreStrengths and Weaknesses of the Biological Model and Environmental Model in Determining the Etiology of Schizophrenia3559 Words   |  15 Pagesto account for the etiology of schizophrenia. These two models, which are antecedents of the different developmental perspectives, explain how these perspectives differ and how they can be applied to gain better knowledge of the etiology of psychopathology. It is crucial to regard them in this way so as to identify their weaknesses and strengths. Biological Model and Schizophrenia Numerous scholars adopt several variants of the stress-vulnerability model of schizophrenia, and one of the mostRead MoreAccording to NAMI (), schizophrenia is a long term mental illness that interferes with a person’s1100 Words   |  5 PagesAccording to NAMI (), schizophrenia is a long term mental illness that interferes with a person’s ability to think clearly, make decisions, and relate to others, impairing a person from functioning to their full potential when left untreated. For these persons affected, it is many times difficult to distinguish what is real from what is not. â€Å"Unfortunately, no single simple course of treatment exists.† Research has linked schizophrenia to a multitude of possible causes† (NAMI). As stated by NIHM