Central nervous system depressants

Central nervous system depressants are among the most commonly abused recreational drugs. Barbiturates, benzodiazepines, methaqualone (Quaalude), and related drugs are included in this group. Alcohol, or, more correctly, ethyl alcohol or ethanol, is also sometimes included with this group because it shares many properties with barbiturates and benzodiazepines. The street name for the drugs in this group is "downers," and they produce disinhibiting, antianxiety, and sleep-promoting effects that many people find pleasurable.

Tolerance and withdrawal symptoms accompany chronic alcohol abuse. The most serious withdrawals produce trembling, seizures, hallucinations, delirium, and even death. Alcohol abuse contributes to fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, and cirrhosis, the ninth leading cause of death in Americans. The regular use of alcohol is also associated with increased risk for various cancers, cardiovascular disorders, hypertension, neurological problems and accidents. Studies have shown that heavy drinkers are 50 percent more likely to die than others in their age cohorts. Because of their sedative effects barbiturates and benzodiazepines, even when prescribed by physicians, are also among the leading causes of accidents and arrests for driving under the influence of drugs.

There are no treatment substitutes for alcohol but pharmacological treatment includes the antagonist drug Ro15-4513 which reduces the desired effects of alcohol but, since it does not reduce

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ancy also increases the chance of low birth weight infants of shorter length with smaller head and chest measurements. Infants are said to suffer from fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) if they possess a certain number of problems including growth retardation before and after birth, very low weight, various central nervous system disorders, and two or more anomalies such as small head, small eyes, thin upper lip, short nose, and others. When only some of these criteria are met children are said to suffer from fetal alcohol effects (FAE) . FAS occurs in approximately 2.5 percent of live births and FAE in as many as 10 percent of births. Mothers who drink moderately during pregnancy have infants who experience "more subtle" neurobehavioral and growth deficits (Leavitt, 1995, p. 161). Among the central nervous system depressants barbiturates and antianxiety drugs have also been suggested as possible causes of FAS. Temporary memory and attention deficits result from alcohol intoxication and these episodes are of longer duration in chronic alcoholics. Three medical conditions that feature severe memory problems, Korsakoff's syndrome, Wernicke's syndrome, and dementia, are also contributed to, in varying degrees, by chronic alcohol a

Category: Medical - C