Norepinephrine therapy

Goncalves JA, Hydo LJ, Barie PS. Factors influencing outcome of prolonged norepinephrine therapy for shock in critical surgical illness. Shock 1998 10 231-236. 

The modern usage of P2" go Asts for the treatment of asthma dates to 1903 when the effect of injected epinephrine [51-43-4] (adrenaline) C2H23NO2, (1 R = CH3) was investigated (see Epinephrine and norepinephrine) (33). As in some other modem treatments, eg, xanthines and anticholinergics, the roots of P2" go Ast therapy for asthma can be found in historical records which document the use of herbal extracts containing ephedrine [299-42-3] C qH NO, (2) as bronchodilators. Epinephrine and ephedrine are stmcturaHy related to the catecholamine norepinephrine [51-41-2] CgH NO, (1, R = H), a neurotransmitter of the adrenergic nervous system (see Neuroregulators). 

SSRIs are theorized to reduce the frequency of hot flashes by increasing serotonin in the central nervous system and by decreasing LH. Of the SSRIs, citalopram, paroxetine, and sertraline all have been studied and have demonstrated a reduction in hot flashes while treating other symptomatic complaints such as depression and anxiety.33 Venlafaxine, which blocks the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine, has demonstrated a reduction in hot flashes primarily in the oncology population.34 Overall, these antidepressant medications offer a reasonable option for women who are unwilling or cannot take hormonal therapies, particularly those who suffer from depression or anxiety. These agents should be prescribed at the lowest effective dose to treat symptoms and may be titrated based on individual response. 

The answer is a. (Hardman, p 224.) Epinephrine is the drug of choice to relieve the symptoms of an acute, systemic, immediate hypersensitivity reaction to an allergen (anaphylactic shock). Subcutaneous administration of a 1 1000 solution of epinephrine rapidly relieves itching and urticaria, and this may save the life of the patient when laryngeal edema and bronchospasm threaten suffocation and severe hypotension and cardiac arrhythmias become life-endangering. Norepinephrine, isoproterenol, and atropine are ineffective therapies Angioedema is responsive to antihis-... 

Patients sustain convulsions and neurological deterioration. The urine contains low levels of the metabolites of serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine. The reductase also plays a role in the maintenance of tetrahydrofolate levels in brain, and some patients have had low folate levels in the serum and CNS. Treatment has been attempted with tryptophan and carbidopa to improve serotonin homeostasis and with folinic acid to replete diminished stores of reduced folic acid. This therapy is sometimes effective. Diagnosis involves assay of DHPR in skin fibroblasts or amniotic cells. Phenylalanine hydroxylase activity is normal. 

ECT, electroconvulsive therapy MAOI, monoamine oxidase inhibitor SNRI, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor SSRI, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, TCA, tricyclic antidepressant. 

Duloxetine, a dual inhibitor of serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake indicated for depression and painful diabetic neuropathy, is expected to become first-line therapy for SUI. Duloxetine is thought to facilitate the bladder-to-sympathetic reflex pathway, increasing urethral and external urethral sphincter muscle tone during the storage phase. 

Reserpine also interferes with the neuronal storage of a variety of central transmitter amines such that significant depletion of norepinephrine, dopamine, and 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin) occurs. This central transmitter depletion is responsible for the sedation and other CNS side effects associated with reserpine therapy. The depletion of brain amines also may contribute to the antihypertensive effects of reserpine. 

The TCA drugs have lost their place as first-line therapy for depression because of their bothersome side effects (Table 33.2) at therapeutic doses and lethal effects in toxic doses. In addition to their presynaptic effects on the neuronal uptake of norepinephrine and serotonin, they block several postsynaptic receptors. They are potent cholinergic muscarinic receptor antagonists, resulting in symptoms such as dry mouth, constipation, tachycardia, blurred vision and urinary retention. Blockade of histamine receptors (Hi) often results in sedation and weight gain. Antagonism of aj-adrenoceptors in the vasculature can cause orthostatic hypotension. 

Contraindications for antipsychotic therapy are few they may include Parkinson s disease, hepatic failure, hypotension, bone marrow depression, or use of CNS depressants. Overdoses of antipsychotics are rarely fatal, except for thioridazine, which is associated with major ventricular arrhythmias, cardiac conduction block, and sudden death. For other agents gastric lavage should be attempted even if several hours have elapsed since the drug was taken, because gastrointestinal motility is decreased and the tablets may still be in the stomach. Moreover, activated charcoal effectively binds most of these drugs and can be followed by a saline cathartic. The hypotension often responds to fluid replacement or pressor agents such as norepinephrine. 

Also of interest is the report by Anderson and colleagues (154) that found a reduction in the urinary output of norepinephrine and its metabolites in nine female SAD patients treated with light therapy. They concluded that the results were compatible with changes seen after antidepressant drug therapy and recommended controlled trials to confirm this preliminary finding. 

Anderson JL, Vasiie RG, Mooney JJ, etai. Changes in norepinephrine output foiiowing iight therapy for faii/winter seasonai depression. Biol Psychiatry 1992 32 700-704. 

Atropine and other antimuscarinic drugs have been used to provide symptomatic relief in the treatment of urinary urgency caused by minor inflammatory bladder disorders (Table 8-3). However, specific antimicrobial therapy is essential in bacterial cystitis. In the human urinary bladder, M2 and M3 receptors are expressed predominantly with the M3 subtype mediating direct activation of contraction. As in intestinal smooth muscle, the M2 subtype appears to act indirectly by inhibiting relaxation by norepinephrine and epinephrine. 

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