Disease name
Psychotic disorders
Introduction
Psychotic disorders are a group of illnesses that affect the mind. These illnesses alter a person’s ability to think clearly, make good judgments, respond emotionally, communicate effectively, understand reality and behave appropriately. When symptoms are severe, people with psychotic disorders have difficulty staying in touch with reality and often are unable to meet the ordinary demands of daily life. However, even the most severe psychotic disorders usually are treatable. Examples of Psychotic disorders include Schizophrenia, Schizoaffective disorder, Schizophreniform disorder, Brief psychotic disorder, Delusional disorder, Shared psychotic disorder, Substance-induced psychotic disorder, Psychotic disorder due to a medical condition, and Paraphrenia
Overview and facts
About 1% of the population worldwide suffers from psychotic disorders. These disorders most often first ap¬pear when a person is in his or her late teens, 20s or 30s. They also tend to affect men and women almost equally.
Symptoms
Symptoms vary from person to person and may change over time. The major symptoms of psychotic disor-ders are hallucinations and delusions:
- Hallucinations are unusual sensory experiences or perceptions of things that aren’t actually present, such as seeing things that aren’t there, hearing voices, smelling odors, having a “funny” taste in your mouth and feeling sensations on your skin even though nothing is touching your body.
- Delusions are false beliefs that are persistent and organized, and that do not go away after receiving logi¬cal or accurate information. For example, a person who is certain his or her food is poisoned, even if it has been proven that the food is fine, is suffering from a delusion.
Other possible symptoms of psychotic illnesses include:
- Disorganized or incoherent speech
- Confused thinking
- Strange, possibly dangerous behavior
- Slowed or unusual movements
- Loss of interest in personal hygiene
- Loss of interest in activities
- Problems at school or work and with relationships
- Cold, detached manner with the inability to express emotion
- Mood swings or other mood symptoms, such as depression or mania
Causes and symptoms
The exact cause of psychotic disorders is not known, but researchers believe that many factors may play a role. Some psychotic disorders tend to run in families, suggesting that the tendency, or likelihood, to develop the disorder may be inherited. Environmental factors may also play a role in their development, including stress, drug abuse and major life changes.
In addition, people with certain psychotic disorders may have an imbalance of certain chemicals in the brain. They may be either very sensitive to or produce too much of a chemical called dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter, a substance that helps nerve cells in the brain send messages to each other. An imbal¬ance of dopamine affects the way the brain reacts to certain stimuli, such as sounds, smells and sights and can lead to hallucinations and delusions.
Test and Diagnosis
If symptoms are present, the doctor will perform a complete medical history and physical examination to determine the cause of the symptoms. Although there are no laboratory tests to specifically diagnose psy-chotic disorders except those that accompany a physical illness, the doctor may use various tests, such as blood tests and X-rays, to rule out physical illness as the cause of the symptoms.
If the doctor finds no physical reason for the symptoms, he or she may refer the person to a psychiatrist or psychologist, mental health professionals who are specially trained to diagnose and treat mental illnesses. Psychiatrists use specially designed interview and assessment tools to evaluate a person for a psychotic disorder.
Treatment
Most psychotic disorders are treated with a combination of medications and psychotherapy.
- Medication: The main medications used to treat psychotic disorders are called antipsychotics. These medicines are effective in managing the most troubling symptoms of psychotic dis¬orders, such as delusions, hallucinations and thinking problems.
- Psychotherapy: Various types of psychotherapy, including individual, group and family therapy, may be used to help support the person with a psychotic disorder.
Sources and links