Neurodevelopmental, Neurocognitive, Eating, Substance Use, and Legal Mental Health Disorders

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering key terms from Chapter 10 (Neurodevelopmental/Neurocognitive), Chapter 12 (Eating Disorders), Chapter 14 (Substance/Gambling), and Chapter 16 (Mental Health and the Law).

Neurodevelopmental Disorders

A group of disorders that typically arise in childhood and involve dysfunction in the brain affecting cognitive, emotional, and behavioral functioning.

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

A persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development, with symptoms present prior to age 12.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

A disorder characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and interaction across multiple contexts, alongside restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities.

Intellectual Developmental Disorder (Intellectual Disability)

Significant deficits in intellectual and adaptive functions (reasoning, problem-solving, etc.) that limit personal independence and social responsibility, with onset during the developmental period.

Specific Learning Disorder

Persistent difficulties in academic skills such as reading, written expression, or mathematics, with performance substantially below age expectations.

Aphasia

A language disturbance involving deterioration or impairment of communication abilities.

Apraxia

An inability to execute motor activities despite intact motor function and understanding of the task.

Agnosia

The failure to recognize or identify objects despite intact sensory functions.

Neurofibrillary Tangles

Abnormal accumulations of a protein called tau that collect inside neurons, characteristic of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Beta-Amyloid Plaques

Dense deposits of protein and cellular material that accumulate outside and around nerve cells in Alzheimer’s Disease.

Vascular Neurocognitive Disorder

Cognitive decline caused by cerebrovascular disease, such as strokes or blood flow problems, affecting processing speed and executive function.

Delirium

An acute disturbance in attention and awareness that develops over a short period, fluctuates in severity, and is caused by a medical condition or substance.

Anorexia Nervosa (AN)

An eating disorder characterized by self-starvation, significantly low body weight, a distorted body image, and an intense fear of gaining weight.

Bulimia Nervosa (BN)

A disorder involving recurrent episodes of binge eating followed by inappropriate compensatory behaviors (purging) to prevent weight gain.

Binge-Eating Disorder (BED)

A disorder characterized by recurrent binge eating episodes without the use of compensatory behaviors, resulting in distress and often obesity.

Other Specified Feeding or Eating Disorder (OSFED)

A category for eating disturbances that cause significant distress but do not meet the full criteria for Anorexia, Bulimia, or Binge-Eating Disorder.

Amenorrhea

The absence of menstruation, previously a diagnostic requirement for Anorexia Nervosa.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

A measure of body fat based on height and weight, used to determine severity levels in Anorexia Nervosa (e.g., extreme is < 15\,kg/m^2).

Substance Use Disorder

A cluster of cognitive, behavioral, and physiological symptoms indicating that the individual continues using a substance despite significant substance-related problems.

Substance Intoxication

Behavioral and psychological changes resulting from the physiological effects of a substance on the central nervous system.

Substance Withdrawal

Physiological and behavioral symptoms that occur when heavy use of a substance is stopped or reduced.

Tolerance

A state where increased amounts of a substance are needed to achieve the desired effect, or the effect of the same amount is diminished.

Delirium Tremens (DTs)

A severe form of alcohol withdrawal characterized by hallucinations, agitation, fever, and tremors; it can be fatal.

Gambling Disorder

A behavioral addiction involving persistent and recurrent problematic gambling behavior that leads to clinically significant impairment or distress.

Harm Reduction Model

A prevention and treatment approach that focuses on reducing the negative consequences of substance use rather than requiring complete abstinence.

Civil Commitment

The legal process by which a person can be involuntarily hospitalized and treated for mental illness if they are a danger to themselves or others, or are gravely disabled.

Grave Disability

A legal criterion for civil commitment where a person is so impaired by a mental disorder that they cannot provide for their own basic needs like food, clothing, or shelter.

Tarasoff Duty to Warn

A legal requirement for therapists to warn potential victims if a client poses a credible and imminent threat to their safety.

Competence to Stand Trial

A legal standard requiring that a defendant understands the charges against them and the trial proceedings, and can participate in their own defense.

Insanity Defense

A legal doctrine stating that a defendant should not be held responsible for a crime if they were mentally incapacitated at the time of the act.

M’Naghten Rule

The insanity defense standard requiring that the defendant did not know the nature of the act or did not know right from wrong due to a "disease of the mind."

Guilty but Mentally Ill (GBMI)

A verdict where a defendant is found guilty and responsible for the crime but is also found to be mentally ill and in need of treatment.

Deinstitutionalization

The historical movement and process of closing large psychiatric hospitals and moving patients to community-based living and care.