Psyc 301 Disorders of Affect

Apathy

a lack of feeling, emotion, or interest, with dependency on prompts from others and lack of concern about oneself

Apathy treatment

Methylphenidate, atypical antipsychotics (dopamine boosters), bromocriptine and amantadine (for TBI), donepezil/galantamine/memantine (in AD), and modafinil

Valuation system

Automatic thought process of considering what behaviours you will engage in; dopamine is the main currency in evaluation

Valuation system structures

Orbital pre-frontal cortex, ventral striatum (caudate head and nucleus accumbens)

Apathy can result from damage to what systems?

Valuation system, mediating system, and motor system

Mediating system

Converts perceived value of an action into motivation, efforts, and goal-direct behaviours

Mediating system structures

Anterior cingulate cortex, ventral striatum, and dorsal pre-frontal cortex

Motor system

Produces voluntary movement that have been valuated as worthy by the valuation system and triggered by the mediation system

Motor system structures

Anterior cingulate cortex, posterior midcingulate cortex, and supplementary motor area

Affect in apathy

Flat—no range

Mood in apathy

Neutral—nothing happening

Thought content in apathy

Fairly empty

Apathy response to prompting

Complies easily

Emotionalism characteristics

Rapidly onset, brief, involuntary, and intense episodes of laughing or crying that are usually emotionally incongruent

Emotionalism affect

Incongruent with emotions

Emotionalism onset, duration, and control

Rapid, brief, and involuntary with insight

Emotionalism thought content

Self-conscious

Emotionalism emotional motor expression network structures

Frontal and temporal cortex, cerebellum, and brain stem

Emotionalism motor expression network's inhibitory input

Somatosensory cortex->motor cortex->frontal and temporal cortex; cerebellum->brainstem

Emotionalism treatment

Distraction, explanation of condition to others, SSRIs (can be effective within 72 hours), and DM/Q (cough syrup)