Pathophysiology of Alcohol-Related Psychosis?
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Alcohol-related psychosis is a secondary psychosis that manifests as prominent hallucinations and delusions occurring in a variety of alcohol-related conditions. For patients with alcohol use disorder, previously known as alcohol abuse and alcohol dependence, psychosis can occur during phases of acute intoxication or withdrawal, with or without delirium tremens. In addition, alcohol hallucinosis and alcoholic paranoia are 2 uncommon alcohol-induced psychotic disorders, which are seen only in chronic alcoholics who have years of severe and heavy drinking. Lastly, psychosis can also occur during alcohol intoxication, also known as pathologic intoxication, an uncommon condition the diagnosis of which is considered controversial
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@khushboo Ethanol is a small molecule that readily distributes to the brain and reaches peak levels in blood approximately 30 minutes after ingestion of an alcoholic drink. Ethanol affects proteins that are associated with a wide variety of neurotransmitters and pathways. These include the dopamine pathway, serotonin pathway, proteins associated with GABAA receptor, glutamate receptors (ie, N -methyl-D-aspartate [NMDA]/α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid [AMPA]/Kainate), mGlu receptors, nicotinic receptors, cannabinoid CB1 receptors, voltage-gated calcium ion channels, and calcium-activated potassium channels. Like other psychotic disorders, the exact etiology of alcohol-related psychosis remains unclear, but most likely it is related to dopamine in the limbic and possibly other systems, such as the glutamatergic neurotransmitter system. The dopamine hypothesis often is applied to psychosis involving excessive activity of the dopaminergic system. Animal studies have shown dopaminergic activity to increase with increased release of dopamine when alcohol is administered.