Transcript Slide 1

• What would a bio-psychologist suggest to be
the causes of OCD?
• How might this influence their attempt to
treat the disorder?
We are learning
about...
Drug therapy for
anxiety disorders
We are learning
how to...
Describe
treatments
Evaluate
treatments
Compare and
contrast
treatments
We need to
use...
Reasoning
Neurotransmission
• Brain activity depends on neurons (brain cells)
being able to communicate with each other.
This communication occurs at synapses.
Source: science photo library
Neurons
Neuronal cell
bodies
Axons
Synapses occur
at the junctions
Vesicles release neurotransmitter
into synaptic cleft
Neurotransmitter binds to
receptors & activates them
Enzymes are released to break
down the neurotransmitter
Excess neurotransmitter is taken
up by the pre-synaptic neurone
Vesicles are replenished with new
& reused neurotransmitter
• In OCD, synapses in some parts of the brain
don’t fire often enough. How could we
interfere with the process of synaptic
transmission to make them fire more often?
In groups of 3-4, assign the roles of:
• A patient
– Your job is to present symptoms of an anxiety
disorder and then ultimately choose a treatment
• One or two drug reps
– Your job is to ‘sell’ an appropriate drug treatment
• One or two psychologists
– Your job is to explain the drawbacks of this
treatment and then suggest an alternative therapy
Let’s evaluate drug treatments
• Remember TEARS...
– Time
– Effectiveness
– Acceptability
– Relapse
– Side effects