The biological way of treating phobias

What is drug therapy

treatment involving drugs such as chemicals that have a particular effect on the functioning of the brain or some other body system => usually affects neurotransmitter levels

What are SSRI’s

 the standard medical treatment to tackle symptoms of OCD => involves a specific antidepressant drug called

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)

How do Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) work

• They work of the serotonin system of the brain

• Released by certain neurons in the brain

• It is released by the presynaptic neurons and travels across a synapse

• The neurotransmitter chemically conveys the signal from the presynaptic neuron to the postsynaptic neuron

• It gets reabsorbed by the presynaptic neuron where it is broken down and reused

• SSRI's successfully prevent reabsorption and breakdown + effectively increase levels of serotonin in the synapse => continue to stimulate the postsynaptic neuron

• Means that the serotonin system returns to the usual level of functioning

• It can take up to 3 MONTHS of daily use of SSRI's to have much impact on symptoms

What are SSRI’s often used with

• Drugs are often used with CBT to treat OCD

• Drugs = reduce a persons emotional symptoms of feeling anxious or depressed

This means that people with OCD can engage more effectively with the CBT
 

What are some alternative treatments for OCD instead of SSRI’s

• Doses can be increased if symptoms of OCD do not improve in the initial 3-4 months of taking SSRI's

 

Tricyclics = older type of antidepressant => acts on various systems including the serotonin system where it has the same effect as SSRI's

 

SNRI's = more recently been used to treat OCD => different type of antidepressant => used as a second line of defence if the individual does not respond to the SSRI's

What are some strengths of using SSRI’s to treat OCD

Evidence of effectiveness

• Clear evidence that SSRI's reduce symptom severity and improve the quality of life for people with OCD

• Soomro et al. reviewed 17 studies that compared SSRI's to placebos in treatment of OCD

• All 17 studies showed significantly that SSRI's had better outcomes than the placebo conditions

• Symptoms reduce for around 70% for SSRI's than for the placebo

This means that drugs appear to be helpful for most people with OCD

 

Cost effective and non-disruptive

• In general they are cheep compared to psychological treatments

• Many tablets can be manufactured in the time it takes to conduct 1 session of psychological therapy

• Using drugs to treat OCD = good value for public health systems like the NHS

• It represents good use of limited funds => compared to psychological therapies

• SSRI's = not disruptive to peoples lives

This means that drugs are popular for many people with OCD and their doctors

What are some limitations of using SSRI’s to treat OCD

COUNTERPOINT
- drug treatments may not be the most effective treatment option available

- a researcher carried out a systematic review of outcome studies and concluded that both cognitive and behaviour therapies were more effective than SSRI's in the treatment of OCD

This means that drugs may not be the optimum treatment for OCD

Serious side-effects

• Drug treatments such as SSRI's have side effects such as:

• Indigestion

• Blurred vision

• Loss of sex-drive

These side effects tend to be temporary but can be distressing and can even be long lasting in some people

• Individuals with OCD may be more sensitive to the dose required to treat their symptoms

• Could make side effects more pronounced

This means that some people have a reduced quality of life as a result of taking drugs and may stop taking them altogether => Meaning that the drugs cease to be effective