Evaluation of drugs for the treatment of schizophrenia

The first 200 words of this essay...

* What are the advantages and disadvantages of using medication for the treatment of schizophrenia?

According to the Medical Model of psychology one of the way genes may influence behavior is through biochemical agents in the brain. The view, that the brain produces its own hallucinogens is supported by some evidence, and more specifically by Smythies's findings of hallucinogen-like chemicals in the brain. Additionally, dopamine, a neurotransmitter, has received the majority of research attention. It is agreed that rather than the production of dopamine, the amount of it that is utilized plays role in schizophrenia. More dopamine is utilized either as a result of rather sensitive post-synaptic receptors for the neurotransmitter or because of an increased number of the receptor sites. This results in the fact that in people suffering from Schizophrenia the number of these receptor sites is higher and they are more densely packed. The medical model offers a variety of somatic therapies for abnormal behavior and schizophrenia. Chemotherapy1, Electroconvulsive therapy2, and psychosurgery3 are probably the basic categories of these therapies. As it has been mentioned previously, schizophrenia is caused by the presence of chemicals in the brain and by dopamine. Therefore the most effective