It may also be used in adult patients for preanesthetic medication to produce sedation (sleepiness or drowsiness), relieve anxiety, and decrease the ability to recall events related to the day of surgery. Barbiturates activate GABAergic synapses in addition to increasing the binding affinity of benzodiazepine and GABA receptors. GABAa receptors in particular appear to be the primary site of augmented inhibitory action for barbiturates. In addition, barbiturates block the glutamate subreceptor α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA). Inhibiting the AMPA subreceptor of this excitatory neurotransmitter at least partially accounts for the anticonvulsant property of barbiturates. If you are prescribed depressants for a health condition, always take your medication exactly as prescribed.
- Misuse of CNS stimulants can cause severe paranoia and psychosis, severe depression and suicidal thoughts.
- People who misuse the medication or become dependent on it may have more severe symptoms, such as very slow breathing and memory loss.
- Sedatives, or central nervous system depressants, are a group of drugs that slow brain activity.
- However, this can lead to a cycle of dependency as tolerance builds, prompting users to consume higher doses to achieve the desired effects.
II. Part 2. Stimulants and Depressants
Contrary to popular misconception, opioids central nervous system (cns) depressants are not depressants in the classical sense.4 They do produce central nervous system depression, but they also excite certain areas of the central nervous system. To remain true to the term “depressant”, opioids cannot be classified as such. For opioid agonists and opium derivatives, these are classified differently. These drugs are more correctly identified as “analgesic” or “narcotic”. Nonbenzodiazepines, sometimes referred to as Z-drugs, are a class of hypnotic depressants that are mainly used to treat insomnia and sometimes anxiety.129130 They are structurally related to benzodiazepines.
Is there any way to prevent CNS depression?
Experts aren’t exactly sure how CNS stimulants work, although they suspect they increase levels of one or more neurotransmitters in the brain, such as dopamine, norepinephrine, or serotonin. For example, phentermine possibly indirectly increases leptin levels – leptin is a substance that tells us we feel full. They increase energy, improve attention and alertness, and elevate blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate. They decrease the need for sleep, reduce appetite, improve confidence and concentration, and lessen inhibitions.
At high concentrations, barbiturates can also bind to the main site as direct agonists. It is very easy to overdose on these substances, especially if the user has no tolerance. It is important to note that dependence does not only happen in people who misuse sedatives. It also affects people who take them exactly as the doctor prescribed.
Treatment & Support
With further LA dosing, CNS excitation progresses to CNS depression, and eventual respiratory arrest. Both metabolic and respiratory acidosis decrease the convulsive dose 63. Central nervous system depression may progress to its fourth and most dangerous stage. Stupor typically develops and may progress to seizures, coma, cardiopulmonary arrest, or death (20,46). It is estimated that more than 20% of individuals who die from SSDS have no prior history of solvent abuse (18).
Local anesthetic-induced seizures should be treated with intravenous diazepam. Measures to protect the airway and support ventilation may also be required. The way in which the Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes myelinate nerves differ. A Schwann cell usually myelinates a single axon, completely surrounding it.
Recall from Chapter 4 that γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the brain’s main inhibitory neurotransmitter. This is because GABA targets GABA receptors, which promote hyperpolarization of the postsynaptic cell. This inhibits the postsynaptic cell from firing and releasing other neurotransmitters such as glutamate or norepinephrine. As a result, increasing GABA activity will, in general, reduce the activity of other neurons and transmitters.