ARTICLE REVIEW

Article Review

Article Review

Abstract & Introduction

All organisms, no matter how big or small, and all the cells that compose them, need energy to survive. Metabolism is the process through which a life form gets energy from its environment and uses it to live. Metabolism includes eating food, breaking it down into nutrients, getting the nutrients to each cell of the body and each cell's processes that utilizes this food energy.

The immune system is not a simple organ or a simple function. It is a constellation of cells and tissues that work together in the challenging task of identifying what belongs to the body (the self) from those that may be harmful- like old, dead cells or outsider particles like some kinds of bacteria, viruses. Our immune systems have to be very intelligent to deal with the magnificent variety of unknowns in the world.



Articles Reviewed

These medications have largely replaced the use of typical or first-generation antipsychotics (FGAs), as they have demonstrated similar efficacy with minimal to no extra-pyramidal symptoms (EPS) at therapeutic doses. However, SGAs have gained much notoriety for causing metabolic derangements including weight gain, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia including new-onset type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). These adverse effects are all risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and along with lifestyle and genetic components, contribute to the decreased lifespan of patients with schizophrenia. Therefore, it is important to fully assess, and inform patients of, the risks versus the therapeutic benefit of these agents. (McKusick 2008 79-84)

There is an increasing recognition of the impact of weight gain on the development of metabolic abnormalities in young people receiving atypical antipsychotic drugs for first-episode psychosis. This study examined the prevalence of such abnormalities in a specialist early-intervention community mental health team.

According to Curtis, Patients with mental and substance use disorders have shown higher rates of morbidity and mortality from medical illnesses than the general population, and physicians are also increasingly aware of adverse effects of psychiatric medications on metabolic and cardiovascular health. In light of these problems, this article addresses an important unmet need of patients with mental disorders—namely, the lack of integration of general medical care with psychiatric care and the related problem of barriers to collaboration and communication among health care providers. Managing Metabolic Abnormalities in the Psychiatrically Ill is the first article to provide a current review of the relationships among psychiatric illnesses, metabolic abnormalities, and treatment, focusing on how clinicians can tailor care to those doubly-afflicted patients. (Epstein 2009 640-645)

The article integrates research findings into practical clinical guidelines that spell out what psychiatrists need to know when their patients with mental illness suffer from—or are at risk of developing—obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or the metabolic syndrome. The contributors address those risks that need to be considered in the overall context of treatment, background risks of medical illnesses associated with specific psychiatric disorders themselves, and the means of applying these data to treatment recommendations, monitoring, and clinical practice. Among the specific topics addressed are:

Potential effects of psychotropics on appetite, body weight, and ...