AUTISM

Autism, or autism spectrum disorder is a condition that comprises restricted interest and behavior patterns and a significant delay in social interactions, developmental communication. It makes children have difficulty during communication. Autism has no cure, but treatment is based on therapies and other approved treatment forms. Treatment of symptoms is majorly based on psychosocial therapies to assist in symptom alleviation.

Some of the therapies include;

 Behavioral therapy involves different types of therapies that are used to identify behaviors in the patients that are considered to have diverse effects on their health and can lead to self-destruction. It is based on the belief that all behaviors are learned and unwanted behaviors can be changed.

Play therapy, since children use play to learn coping mechanisms and express their feelings, the technique helps in building behaviors and own interests of an autistic child to develop relation, communication, and development skills.

Occupational therapy, which is used to help a child with autism to learn, maintain, and promote the necessary skills that the child will require in a social setting like school and beyond. It results in the improvement of self-esteem, independence, self-confidence, and social interactions.

Physical therapy, since some of the disorders related to autism are physical, some of the people with autism have difficulties with motion due to low mass tone. Physical therapy will help build and tone muscles and coordination, resulting in an improvement of social and functioning skills. Speech, autism affects the development of language. Speech therapy is recommended for the patients who have communication challenges such as comprehension of words, memorization, conversation skills, and reliability on echolalia.

SCHIZOPHRENIA

This is a severe and serious mental disorder that affects a person’s thinking, feelings, and behavior. The affected persons face difficulties when it comes to differentiating between imaginations and realities. They appear detached and find it hard to show emotions that are normal in social settings. Most people affected by this disorder have no violent behaviors.

This disorder has no cure so the treatments available aim at doing away with the disease symptoms, but the majority of the affected persons have fruitful and satisfying lives if the correct treatment is given to them, If a person with schizophrenia is put under rehabilitation, chances of recovery are high. The rehabilitation enables the persons to regain confidence and the mastery needs to lead a fruitful, fulfilling, and independent life.

Some of the services that can help a person to recover include the following; Use of antipsychotics, such medications are usually taken orally in the form of pills or liquids. Some are administered through injections once or two times monthly. The best medication combination can be obtained if the person with the disease works in unity with the doctor taking care of them. These are the most commonly prescribed drugs as they affect dopamine, the brain neurotransmitter, resulting in the control of symptoms of the disease.

Psychosocial Treatments, the intervention of these treatments are useful after the best medication combination is obtained by a doctor. Gaining knowledge and survival skills to help with the daily difficulties of schizophrenia assists these people to go after their life dreams and goals, like going to work or school. To encounter fewer relapses and occasional hospitalization, a person is advised to have these psychosocial treatments regularly. In addition, coping and support to persons with schizophrenia helps boost their quality of life, through motivation and encouragement to consistently take drugs.

Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder, having distinctive groups of symptoms of sleeping excessively during the daytime, sleep-inducing hallucinations, cataplexy, sleep immobility, and sleep disruptions in the night. Behavioral adjustments are useful for patients when it comes to clinical management. The symptoms of narcolepsy are regularly disabling, making patients be put on treatments for the rest of their lives.

 Regardless of the accessibility of accepted and yet to be approved therapies for narcolepsy, therapies for narcolepsy, the objective management of this disorder is incurably resulting in more challenges. While treatment is generally based on the symptoms, decisions pertaining to which drug to administer to a patient must consider the conformance, survivability, and abidance. The two types of narcolepsy, Type 1 and Type 2, guide decisions regarding treatment, putting into consideration the symptoms to be treated.

Narcolepsy Pharmacological Best Treatment Options.

Amphetamine salts, Dextroamphetamine, Methylphenidate, Dexmethylphenidate, and Lisdexamfetamine are stimulants used as treatment indications for sleep attacks and excessive daytime sleepiness. Modafinil and Armodafinil are agents used to promote wakefulness. Sodium oxibate is used as an indication for excessive daytime sleepiness, cataplexy, and sleep paralysis.

Sodium oxibate was introduced recently and is a more efficient and the only proven effective medication. It has been recommended by the Food and Drug Administration, for an indication of excessive daytime sleepiness and cataplexy. It improves the symptoms by boosting the nocturnal sleep quality, resulting in an improvement of the symptoms during the day.

Apart from pharmacological treatment, treatment procedures pertaining to behavior are always advisable.  Research done on this recommends patients plan and take daytime naps, as this reduces the tendency of falling asleep and reduces reaction time. The naps are planned based on each patient.

2020-05-22