Psychiatry & Behavioral Science

Diagnostic criteria with time thresholds, substance use, and psychopharmacology side-effect profiles.

Exam weight 6–9% · 2 QBank items · 3 flashcards

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Mood & psychotic disorders

Major depressive episode needs 5 of 9 SIG E CAPS symptoms for at least 2 weeks including mood or anhedonia.
Mania needs 1 week (or any duration if hospitalisation is required); hypomania needs 4 days without functional impairment or psychosis.
Schizophrenia requires 6 months of symptoms; schizophreniform is 1–6 months; brief psychotic disorder is under 1 month.
Schizoaffective disorder requires psychosis for at least 2 weeks in the absence of a mood episode.

Generalised anxiety disorder: excessive worry more days than not for 6 months; first-line SSRI plus cognitive behavioural therapy.
PTSD requires symptoms beyond 1 month; acute stress disorder is 3 days to 1 month.
Factitious disorder is intentional symptom production for the sick role; malingering is for external gain.
Somatic symptom disorder features excessive thoughts and anxiety about symptoms for over 6 months regardless of medical explanation.

Alcohol withdrawal timeline: tremor at 6–24 hours, seizures at 12–48 hours, hallucinosis at 12–48 hours, delirium tremens at 48–96 hours.
Opioid intoxication: miosis, respiratory depression; withdrawal is intensely unpleasant but not life-threatening.
Cocaine intoxication: mydriasis, hypertension, chest pain — avoid pure β-blockers; benzodiazepines first.
Naltrexone and acamprosate reduce alcohol cravings; buprenorphine-naloxone and methadone treat opioid use disorder.

SSRIs take 4–6 weeks; side effects include sexual dysfunction, GI upset and hyponatremia in the elderly.
Lithium: narrow therapeutic index, nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, hypothyroidism, Ebstein anomaly in pregnancy.
Clozapine is reserved for treatment resistance and requires absolute neutrophil count monitoring for agranulocytosis.
Neuroleptic malignant syndrome: fever, rigidity, autonomic instability, elevated creatine kinase — treat with dantrolene and bromocriptine.