1. Antipsychotics are a group of drugs that are used to treat serious mental health conditions such as psychosis as well as other emotional and mental conditions. In addition, they are prescribed for the treatment of intractable hiccoughs and pain that can result from restlessness during palliative care. Psychosis is a condition in which a patient loses contact with reality. The condition often includes hallucinations or delusions. When experiencing hallucinations, the patient often hears voices that aren’t actually there, while delusions related to psychosis consist of feelings or ideas that aren’t based on reality.
  2. Antipsychotics help to control the symptoms of psychosis as well as less serious mental health conditions such as bipolar and mood disorder that may develop into later psychosis. Antipsychotics reduce or increase the effect of neurotransmitters in the brain to regulate levels. Neurotransmitters help transfer information throughout the brain. The neurotransmitters affected include dopamine, noradrenaline, and serotonin. Dopamine is the primary neurotransmitter affected by taking antipsychotics; an overactive dopamine system may be one cause of the hallucinations and
  3. delusions commonly experienced during psychosis.
2. Are there different types of antipsychotics?
Some people talk about two types of antipsychotic medication. Your doctor
might call them the following
• Typical or ‘first generation’. These medications have been used
since the 1950s.
• Atypical or ‘second generation’. These medications have been used
since the 1990s.
The main difference between these types is in their side effects. First
generation antipsychotics may have more of an effect on your movement
than newer ones. Although this does not mean newer generation
antipsychotics don’t have any side effects on your movement
First generation antipsychotics (Typical) :
The first generation of antipsychotics have been prescribed since the
1950s.9 The following medications are typical antipsychotics. They have
been listed by their generic name with the brand name in brackets.
• Benperidol (Anquil)
• Chlorpromazine (Largactil)
• Flupentixol (Depixol)
• Fluphenazine (Modecate)
• Haloperidol (Haldol)
• Levomepromazine (Nozinan)
• Pericyazine
• Perphenazine (Fentazin)
• Pimozide (Orap)
• Promazine
• Sulpiride (Dolmatil, Sulpor)
• Trifluoperazine (Stelazine)
• Zuclopenthixol (Clopixol)
Second generation antipsychotics (Atypical) :
The second generation of antipsychotics have been used more since the
1990s.10 Although some of them were developed before then. They have
been listed by their generic name with the brand name in brackets.
• Amisulpride (Solian)
• Aripiprazole (Abilify, Abilify Maintena)
• Clozapine (Clozaril, Denzapine, Zaponex)
• Risperidone (Risperdal & Risperdal Consta)
• Olanzapine (Zyprexa)
• Quetiapine (Seroquel)
• Paliperidone (Invega, Xeplion)


Clozapine :
Clozapine, sold under the brand name Clozaril among others, is an atypical antipsychotic medication. It is mainly used for schizophrenia that does not improve following the use of other antipsychotic medications. In those with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder it may decrease the rate of suicidal behavior
How Does it works ?
A tricyclic dibenzodiazepine, classified as an atypical antipsychotic agent. It binds several types of central nervous system receptors, and displays a unique pharmacological profile. Clozapine is a serotonin antagonist, with strong binding to 5-HT 2A/2C receptor subtype. It also displays strong affinity to several dopaminergic receptors, but shows only weak antagonism at the dopamine D2 receptor, a receptor commonly thought to modulate neuroleptic activity. Agranulocytosis is a major adverse effect associated with administration of this agent.
How do they work :
Brain contains chemicals which help to carry messages from one part
of the brain to another. One of these chemicals is called dopamine. It is
thought that high levels of dopamine may cause the brain to function
differently and may cause the symptoms of psychosis. Antipsychotic
medications reduce the amount of dopamine in the brain or restore the
balance of dopamine with other chemicals in the brain
The older medications on the market were introduced in the mid-1950s to block dopamine.
Antidepressants :
Antidepressants
are psychiatric drugs which are available on prescription
and are licensed to treat depression. Some are also licensed to treat other
conditions, such as:
• anxiety
• phobias
• bulimia (an eating disorder)
• some physical conditions.
How do they work?
Antidepressants work by boosting or prolonging the activity of particular
brain chemicals, such as noradrenaline and serotonin, which are thought
to be involved with regulating mood.
Noradrenaline and serotonin are neurotransmitters. This means that they
pass messages between nerve cells in your brain, and between nerves
and other target organs in the rest of your body.
By causing a change to your brain chemistry, antidepressants may lift your
mood. However, antidepressants don't work for everyone, and there is no
scientific evidence that depression is caused by a chemical imbalance
which is corrected by antidepressants.
What different types of antidepressant are there?
There are several different types of antidepressants, which were
developed at different times. They all tend to act on the same brain
chemicals and cause similar effects, but the different types have different
chemical structures, and may have different side effects.
The different types are:
•Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) :
A newer type of antidepressant medication was introduced into the U.S. in the 1980s, beginning with Prozac (fluoxetine). These drugs offer a different chemical structure than the cyclic antidepressants and therefore produce different effects on the brain. Primarily they assist the brain in maintaining enough supply of the neurotransmitter serotonin. For instance, researchers associate a deficiency of serotonin with depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder and implicate it in panic disorder and other psychological problems. These medications are called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, abbreviated SSRIs
• Serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs)
SNRIs ease depression by impacting chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) used to communicate between brain cells. Like most antidepressants, SNRIs work by ultimately effecting changes in brain chemistry and communication in brain nerve cell circuitry known to regulate mood, to help relieve depression.
SNRIs block the reabsorption (reuptake) of the neurotransmitters serotonin (ser-o-TOE-nin) and norepinephrine (nor-ep-ih-NEF-rin) in the brain.
• Tricyclics and tricyclic-related drugs:
Cyclic antidepressants ease depression by impacting chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) used to communicate between brain cells. Like most antidepressants, cyclic antidepressants work by ultimately effecting changes in brain chemistry and communication in brain nerve cell circuitry known to regulate mood, to help relieve depression.
Cyclic antidepressants block the absorption (reuptake) of the neurotransmitters serotonin (ser-o-TOE-nin) and norepinephrine (nor-ep-ih-NEF-rin), increasing the levels of these two neurotransmitters in the brain. Cyclic antidepressants also affect other chemical messengers, which can lead to a number of side effects.
• Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs):
Antidepressants such as MAOIs ease depression by affecting chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) used to communicate between brain cells. Like most antidepressants, MAOIs work by ultimately effecting changes in the brain chemistry that are operational in depression. An enzyme called monoamine oxidase is involved in removing the neurotransmitters norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine from the brain. MAOIs prevent this from happening, which makes more of these brain chemicals available to effect changes in both cells and circuits that have been impacted by depression MAOIs also affect other neurotransmitters in the brain and digestive system, causing side effects. MAOIs are sometimes used to treat conditions other than depression, such as Parkinson's disease!
Thank you! :)