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Biomedical subjects

M Lader

Publications and source records attributed to M Lader.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources
PubMed1978

Dream content and daytime attitudes in anxious and calm women.

Twenty female anxious neurotic patients were compared with 25 normal female volunteers, divided into a low anxious normal and a high anxious group, with respect to dream report content. Dream reports were analysed using an objective and reliable method and were correlated with the day-time attitudes of the subjects measured by Semantic Differential techniques. Anxiety levels influenced both dream reporting and dream content. In particular, aggression towards the dreamer was more common in the anxious patients. Significant correlations were found in all groups between dream content and daytime attitudes. The results were consistent with the 'continuity' hypothesis of dream function.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed1978

Plasma concentrations of diazepam, noradiazepam and amylobarbitone after short-term treatment of anxious patients.

Twenty-four anxious inpatients were treated with diazepam, amylobarbitone and placebo, each given in flexible dosage for one week, according to a fully-balanced design. Plasma concentrations of diazepam and of its metabolite nordiazepam and of amylobarbitone were determined after two, four and seven days of treatment. Clinical and psychological assessments were made after seven days of each treatment by means of psychiatrist rating scales, patient's self-rating and a comprehensive battery of performance measures. Diazepam and nordiazepam but not amylobarbitone were accumulating over the seven days of treatment. In patients on diazepam without previous amylobarbitone, nordiazepam accumulated more rapidly than diazepam over the week so that the ratio of diazepam to nordiazepam was 2.21 after two days but only 1.14 after seven days; those with previous amylobarbitone on the other hand always had nordiazepam concentrations higher than those of the administered drug and both were accumulating equally. Diazepam and nordiazepam were still detectable in most patients two weeks after the interruption of treatment. No correlations were found between drug concentrations and clinical and psychological effects.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

The electroencephalographic and psychological effects of imipramine in depressed inpatients.

Ten patients with psychotic depression were assessed on a battery of clinical, EEG, psychological, and biochemical measures during treatment with imipramine (150 mg/day). Significant changes occurred in the scores on self-rated and observer-rated depression scales and on an observer-rated side effect scale. Significant changes also occurred in the EEG evoked response, but the effects on spontaneous activity were minimal. The psychological measures revealed an improvement in performance as treatment progressed. The clinical significance of the changes observed was assessed with reference to their correlations with the clinical rating scores and with the plasma concentrations of imipramine and desmethylimipramine, and the changes observed following the administration of imipramine to non-depressed normal subjects. Changes in evoked EEG activity seemed on balance to be direct central effects of imipramine, whereas changes in psychological performance appeared to be secondary to clinical change.

Adult↗
PubMed1977

Prolactin and psychophysiologic measures after single doses of thioridazine.

Six normal men ingested thioridazine, high and low doses, and placebo on three occasions. Their plasma and urinary thioridazine and mesoridazine plus sulforidazine were measured over 5 hr, together with their plasma prolactin, and a battery of psychophysiologic variables. Drowsiness and EEG changes correlated highly with rise in prolactin, but not with drug plasma concentrations. Finger tremor increased, and some psychologic tests were impaired by thioridazine; other psychologic tests, the auditory-evoked response, and palmar skin conductance were unaffected and showed no relationship to drug or prolactin levels. This suggests that plasma prolactin may be a useful indicator of some aspects of the individual's response to a psychotropic drug, and possibly a better guide to the selection of a suitable drug and its appropriate dose in clinical practice than the measurement of plasma concentrations of the drug itself.

Adult↗
PubMed1976

Monitoring plasma concentrations of neuroleptics.

Among the neuroleptics chlorpromazine has been the most extensively studied despite its complex metabolic pathways. Several metabolites, in particular 7-hydroxychlorpromazine, are psychotropically active. Oral phenothiazines are extensively metabolised "first-pass" through the liver. The relationship between clinical response and plasma concentrations of neuroleptics is tenous. The reasons for the lack of correlation include spontaneous remission in some patients, problems with flexible dosage schedules, the type of patient studied, differences in metabolic patterns, induction of metabolism in the liver, interactions with other drugs, and variations in plasma protein binding. Alternative research strategies might be to study metabolically less complex drugs such as haloperidol or to relate clinical response to autonomic, extrapyramidal, EEG, biochemical or endocrine measures.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1976

Assessment of drugs in schizophrenia. Basic trial design.

Clinical trials with major tranquilizers must take into account the clinical features of patients with schizophrenia and pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of the drug. The objectives of the trial must be carefully defined so that appropriate selection criteria for patients, rating instruments and dosage schedules can be selected. It is useful to monitor physiological and biochemical actions of major tranquilizers as well as the clinical effects.

Antipsychotic Agents↗
PubMed1976

Antianxiety drugs: clinical pharmacology and therapeutic use.

It is difficult to choose among the many drugs advocated for treating anxiety symptoms. The barbiturates were the most commonly used antianxiety agents until recently but are being superseded by the benzodiazepines. The latter are more effective than the barbiturates as shown in comparative clinical trials, they are safer in overdosage (deliberate or accidental), and they are somewhat less likely to induce dependence. The barbiturates have the additional drawback of interfering with the action of other drugs by inducing liver microsomal (oxidising) drug metabolising enzymes. The major tranquilisers (neuroleptics or antipsychotics) are often of value in low dosage in patients with a previous history of dependence on alcohol, the barbiturates or the benzodiazepines. Tricyclic antidepressants are the treatment of choice in anxious and depressed patients and monoamine oxidase inhibitors may be helpful in phobic patients. The beta-adrenoreceptor blocking agents such as propranolol often ameliorate somatic symptoms such as palpitations and tremor. In the treatment of anxious patients it is important to remove causes for anxiety and to limit any course of drug treatment to a finite period. Both dosage level and dosage interval should be flexible. Benzodiazepines remain the drug treatment of choice.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗
PubMed1976

The effects of chlordesmethyldiazepam on behavioral performance and subjective judgment in normal subjects.

Eight normal subjects were tested on a battery of subjective and psychological tests 12 hours after a hypnotic dose of chlordesmethyldiazepam (1 or 2 mg), amylobarbitone sodium (100 mg), and a placebo. The tests included self-ratings of hypnotic effects and alertness; reactiontime, card-sorting, coding and cancellation tasks; arithmetic; and tapping. Before each task, test anxiety and performance expectation was self-rated; and after the task, judgment of performance was self-rated. Residual effects were definitely detectable after the 2-mg dose of benzodiazepine with both behavioral impairment and subjective hangover. Both the 1-mg dose and the barbiturate were almost devoid of such effects. Very few drug effects on test anxiety and performance judgment were discerned. Plasma concentrations of amylobarbitone were related to decreases in test anxiety and of chlordesmethyldiazepam with ratings of sleepiness.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1975

Anxiety: its nature and treatment.

Anxiety is an unpleasant, diffuse emotion, directed towards the future and associated with feelings of threat to the individual. Clinical anxiety occurs when a patient suffers from anxiety which is more frequent, more severe or more persistent than he is used to and can tolerate. Almost a third of the adult population will admit to some symptoms of anxiety. Drug therapy, in particular the benzodiazepines, is the mainstay of treatment, but care must be taken to avoid overprescription.

Adrenergic beta-Antagonists↗
PubMed1975

Effects of attention, activation and stimulus regularity on short-term 'habituation' of the averaged evoked response.

Three studies are reported in which the effects of direction of attention, level of activation and regularity of stimulation on the rate of amplitude decrement over time of the auditory evoked vertex responses in humans were examined. Short-term, stimulus-by-stimulus changes were assessed by averaging across trains each of 10 click stimuli. The effect of directing attentions towards the stimuli was to enhance the N1 - P2 component, but usually only under conditions of high activation and with irregular stimulus presentation. Habituation rate was hardly affected by the experimental manipulations. The most clear-cut relationship between psychological influences and the AER was that between level of activation and the P2 - N2 component.

Adult↗
PubMed1975

Interactions of orphenadrine and phenobarbitone with chlorpromazine: plasma concentrations and effects in man.

1 Two studies were carried out on acutely psychotic patients receiving chlorpromazine (100 mg) 8-hourly. 2 In the pilot study on five patients, plasma chlorpromazine concentrations fell over the course of 3 weeks of treatment and parallel changes were noted in the plasma half-life of antipyrine, salivation rate and handwriting length. 3 In the main study involving twelve patients treated for 15 weeks, the above findings were confirmed and were interpreted as indicating that chlorpromazine accelerated its own metabolism by inducing liver microsomal oxidising enzymes. No metabolites of chlorpromazine were detected in plasma. 4 The addition of phenobarbitone (50 mg) 8-hourly for 3 weeks, or orphenadrine (100 mg) 8-hourly for 3 weeks, resulted in a lowering of plasma chlorpromazine concentrations together with a further shortening of plasma antipyrine half-life. 5 Physiological effects of the additional treatments suggested that phenobarbitone lessens the effects of chlorpromazine by lowering body concentrations. However, orphenadrine acts more by virtue of its anticholinergic effects. 6 It was concluded that phenobarbitone and orphenadrine should not be prescribed routinely in patients receiving major tranquillisers. The need for the addition of orphenadrine should be assessed in each individual case.

Adult↗