NURS 3114 Week 3 - CNS Medications & Oral Calculations Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering Central Nervous System medication classes, prototypes, side effects, adverse reactions, and herbal supplements based on the lecture transcript.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

The command center of the body composed of the brain and spinal cord that receives, processes, and sends instructions to regulate body functions.

Neurons

Brain cells that communicate with each other using chemical messengers called neurotransmitters.

GABA

An inhibitory neurotransmitter that acts as the brain's brake pedal to slow down and calm CNS activity.

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter often called a 'feel-good' messenger that helps regulate mood, anxiety, sleep, and emotional signaling.

Dopamine

A neurotransmitter involved in movement, behavior, motivation, and reward.

Norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter involved in alertness, attention, and the body's stress response.

Benzodiazepines

A drug class including Lorazepam, Diazepam, and Midazolam that enhances GABA's inhibitory effects to slow CNS activity for anxiety, sedation, seizures, or muscle spasms.

Paradoxical Response

An unexpected complication of benzodiazepine therapy where the patient experiences agitation, anxiety, excitement/restlessness, or aggression instead of sedation.

Lorazepam

A benzodiazepine prototype used for anxiety, seizures, and sedation, commonly administered IV for acute seizure management and status epilepticus.

Diazepam

A longer-acting benzodiazepine prototype used for anxiety, seizures, muscle spasms, and alcohol withdrawal.

Midazolam

A rapid-onset, relatively short-duration benzodiazepine used for procedural sedation and anesthesia, which induces amnesia.

Flumazenil

An IV benzodiazepine antagonist that blocks benzodiazepine effects to increase alertness, but carries a major risk of precipitating withdrawal and seizures.

Zolpidem

A nonbenzodiazepine sedative-hypnotic that acts at GABA-A receptors for the short-term treatment of insomnia.

Complex Sleep Behaviors

A serious warning associated with Zolpidem where patients engage in activities while not fully awake (e.g., sleepwalking, sleep-driving, eating) with no memory afterward.

SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors)

Antidepressant class including Fluoxetine and Sertraline that blocks serotonin reuptake, making more serotonin available between neurons to improve mood and anxiety over several weeks.

Bruxism

Teeth grinding or jaw clenching that can occur as a complication during SSRI therapy.

Serotonin Syndrome

A dangerous emergency caused by excess serotonin, presenting with mental status changes (agitation, confusion), autonomic signs (fever, sweating, tachycardia), and neuromuscular symptoms (tremor, hyperreflexia, rigidity).

Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome

A cluster of symptoms including headache, nausea, dizziness, irritability, sleep disturbances, and 'electric shock'-type sensations caused by stopping SSRIs abruptly.

Lithium

A mood stabilizer with a narrow therapeutic range used primarily in bipolar disorder to control acute mania and stabilize mood swings.

Lithium Toxicity

A dangerous state triggered by low sodium or dehydration (causing the kidneys to reabsorb lithium), manifested by N/V/D, coarse tremors, ataxia, slurred speech, and seizures.

Haloperidol

A first-generation/typical antipsychotic that blocks D2 dopamine receptors to control psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations, delusions, and severe agitation.

Extrapyramidal Symptoms (EPS)

Movement disorders caused by blocking dopamine, including acute dystonia, akathisia, and parkinsonism.

Acute Dystonia

An EPS complication of haloperidol marked by sudden muscle spasms, upward eye rolling, and neck/jaw spasms that can become an airway emergency.

Akathisia

An EPS complication characterized by intense internal restlessness, pacing, and an inability to sit still.

Parkinsonism

An EPS complication characterized by tremors, rigidity, shuffling gait, and slowed movement resulting from dopamine receptor blockade.

Tardive Dyskinesia (TD)

A potentially irreversible movement disorder from long-term antipsychotic exposure, marked by repetitive involuntary tongue protrusion, lip smacking, and facial grimacing.

Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS)

A rare, life-threatening emergency caused by antipsychotics, characterized by high fever, severe muscle rigidity, altered mental status, and autonomic instability.

Phenytoin

An antiseizure medication that requires strict oral hygiene due to gingival hyperplasia, with nystagmus and ataxia serving as signs of toxicity.

Lamotrigine

An antiseizure medication that requires starting low and increasing slowly due to the serious risk of severe rash and Stevens-Johnson syndrome.

Levetiracetam

An antiseizure medication associated with significant behavior changes, such as irritability, agitation, and aggression.

Sumatriptan

A serotonin receptor agonist (triptan) taken during an acute migraine attack to abort the migraine via cranial vasoconstriction.

Barbiturates

A medication class (including Phenobarbital and Pentobarbital) that enhances GABA's inhibitory effects to cause generalized CNS depression ('everything goes down').

Amitriptyline

A tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) with strong anticholinergic effects and sedation, capable of causing fatal cardiac dysrhythmias in an overdose.

Trazodone

A highly sedating antidepressant commonly used for sleep, known for causing orthostatic hypotension and the classic emergency adverse effect of priapism.

Buspirone

A non-benzodiazepine anxiolytic used for chronic anxiety/GAD that takes time to take effect, has low abuse potential, and is not for acute panic attacks.

Caffeine Citrate

A CNS stimulant specifically indicated for the management of apnea of prematurity.

Atomoxetine

A nonstimulant ADHD medication that is not a controlled substance, takes time to work, and requires monitoring for mood changes/suicidal thinking and liver injury.

Carbidopa-Levodopa

A combination Parkinson's medication where levodopa converts to dopamine in the brain while carbidopa protects it in the periphery; known for dyskinesias and the 'on-off' phenomenon.

Amantadine

A Parkinson's medication classically associated with livedo reticularis that can also help treat levodopa-induced dyskinesias.

St. John's Wort

An herbal product used for depressive symptoms that has extensive drug interactions, decreases oral contraceptive effectiveness, and causes serotonin syndrome when combined with SSRIs.

Valerian

An herbal product used for sleep and sedation that has additive CNS depressing effects when taken with alcohol or sedatives.

Kava

An herbal product used for anxiety and relaxation that carries a major safety warning for hepatotoxicity (liver toxicity).