Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) Symptoms

Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)

• Definition: A long-term condition characterized by feelings of anxiousness about a wide range of situations
• Key features: Feeling anxious most days
• Physical clinical features:
  • Dizziness
  • Tachycardia
  • Palpitations
  • Diarrhea
  • Dry mouth
  • Headaches
  • Insomnia
• Psychological clinical features:
  • Aggression
  • Lack of concentration
  • Poor memory
  • Loss of sleep
  • Irritability
  • Restlessness
  • Worry

Phobias

• Definition: An irrational fear of an object or situation that triggers severe anxiety
• Types:
  • Social phobia: Fear of social situations
  • Specific phobia: Fear of specific objects or situations

Panic Disorder

• Definition: Episodes of intense anxiety or panic

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• Definition: Recurring thoughts leading to a need to repeatedly perform certain acts

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

• Definition: Anxiety caused by a stressful, frightening, or distressing event

Anxiety: General Characteristics

• Definition: A normal response to threat or unpredictable change in the environment
• Risk factors:
  • Genetic predisposition
  • Drug misuse
  • Hyperthyroidism
  • Hypoglycemia
  • Dysrhythmias
  • Increase in adrenaline
• Clinical features:
  • Tachycardia
  • Dizziness
  • Diarrhea
  • Dry mouth
  • Bruxism
  • Dysphagia
  • Aggression
  • Irritation
  • Poor concentration
  • Reduced pain threshold
  • Sleep loss

Treatment of Anxiety

• Sympathy
• Empathy
• Reassurance to patient
• Giving them their control back
• Sedation for very anxious patients
• Beta-blockers (muscle relaxant)

Depression

• Definition: Sustained depression of mood (unipolar mood disorder)
• Key features:
  • Lowers mood and affects eating, sleeping, feelings, and emotions
• Epidemiology:
  • 400 per 100,000 per year
  • Lifetime expectancy: 10-20%
• Sex ratio: Female:Male = 2:1
• Clinical features:
  • Sustained lowering of mood
  • Early morning waking
  • Loss of concentration
  • Anhedonia (inability to experience pleasure)
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Loss of appetite
  • Lack of energy
  • Reduced libido

Dental Relevance for Depression

• Increased risk of caries and periodontal disease
• Hallucinations are common
• Reduced sexual activity
• Atypical facial pain
• Antidepressant medication (e.g., TCA) can cause xerostomia

Bipolar Disorder

• Definition: Alternating episodes of depression and euphoria
• Epidemiology:
  • 20 per 100,000 per year
  • Lifetime expectancy: 1%
• Sex ratio: Female:Male = 1.3:1
• Clinical features:
  • Episodes of elevated mood associated with mental and physical overactivity
  • Bright clothes
  • Overfamiliarity
  • Disinhibition
  • Pressure of speech
  • Flight of ideas
  • Grandiose ideas
  • Risk-taking behavior

Schizophrenia

• Definition: Psychosis - loss of contact with reality
• Epidemiology:
  • 1% lifetime risk
• Aetiology:
  • Genetic
  • Imbalance of brain chemicals (dopamine)
  • Brain damage (virus or drugs)
  • Structural abnormalities
• Clinical features:
  • Hallucinations (auditory, visual, tactile, gustatory)
  • Delusions
  • Thought disorders
  • Paranoid beliefs
  • Social withdrawal

Dental Relevance for Schizophrenia

• Tranquilizers (antipsychotics) can cause xerostomia
• Increased risk of dental and maxillofacial trauma
• Difficulty communicating and trusting the dentist
• Uncooperative behavior
• Difficulty with oral health instructions

Eating Disorders

• Anorexia Nervosa:
  • Definition: Eating disorder characterized by a need to keep weight as low as possible
  • Sex ratio: Female:Male = 20:1
  • Peak age incidence: 10-19 years old
  • Causes:
    • Voluntary reduction in oral intake to reduce body weight
    • Increase in exercise
    • Laxative abuse
    • Vomiting
  • Clinical features:
    • Low self-esteem
    • Depression
    • Anxiety
    • Light-headedness
    • Dizziness
    • Amenorrhea
• Bulimia Nervosa:
  • Definition: Eating disorder characterized by restricting food intake, then binge eating, and then self-induced vomiting or laxative abuse
  • Epidemiology: 10% of women aged 20-30 are affected
  • Clinical features:
    • Low self-esteem
    • Depression
    • Anxiety
    • Self-harm
  • Complications:
    • Dental erosion (palatal surfaces of upper incisors)
    • Salivary gland enlargement
    • Need to consider low body weight when calculating drug dosages
    • Increased risk of fainting/postural hypotension

Dementia

• Definition: Gradual deterioration of intellect, memory, and cognitive function in the absence of a disturbance of consciousness
• Epidemiology:
  • Onset over 65 years old
• Aetiology:
  • Degenerative disease (e.g., Alzheimer's)
  • Genetic
  • Vascular
  • Metabolic
  • Toxic
  • Brain lesion (e.g., tumor, infection, inflammation)
• Clinical features:
  • Impaired intellect, memory, and concentration
  • Difficulty reading, writing, and speaking
  • Personality change
• Treatment:
  • Social support
• Complications for dental care:
  • Poor oral hygiene
  • Poor attenders

Parkinson's Disease

• Definition: Neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the degeneration of nerve cells in the substantia nigra, leading to a loss of dopamine
• Epidemiology:
  • 1-2 per 1000 per year
  • Onset: 55-70 years old
• Clinical features:
  • Tremor
  • Rigidity
  • Hypokinesia
  • Postural changes
  • Loss of facial expression
  • Delayed swallowing
  • Drooling
• Dental complications:
  • Poor oral hygiene
  • Increased risk of aspiration
  • Difficulty sitting in the dental chair
  • Drooling

Drug Abuse

• Definition: The use of natural and synthetic substances to alter mental state
• Psychological dependence: A condition in which the drug promotes a feeling of satisfaction and a drive to repeat the consumption of the drug to induce pleasure or avoid discomfort
• Physical dependence: A state that shows itself by physical disturbances when the amount of drug in the body is markedly reduced
• Tolerance: When markedly increased amounts of the substance are required to achieve the desired effect or there is a markedly diminished effect with regular use of the same dose

Note: The above notes are a summary of the provided text and are organized by topic for easy review.

This quiz covers the symptoms of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, a long-term condition characterized by excessive anxiety about everyday things. It includes physical and psychological features of GAD.