The Effects of Certain Drugs

Unit 7. Assignment 2. The Effects of Selected Drugs and Diseases on the Central Nervous System. Alcohol’s use as an anesthetic is based on the effects it has on the brain, including relaxation and insensitivity to pain. Because the anesthetizing effects of alcohol are less predictable than the drugs available to modern-day anesthetists, alcohol is no longer used professionally to anesthetize patients. Some diseases related to alcohol are: liver disease, high blood pressure, muscle weakness, anemia, clotting disorders, gastrointestinal inflammation, and weakened bones. Aspirin is used to treat pain for inflammation and work by blocking production of pain enhancing neurotransmitters, such as prostaglandins. Acetaminophen is also effective against pain. Aspirin acts locally at the site of the pain to stop it from producing pain signals. Aspirin can be good or bad by helping to prevent heart attacks. Lidocaine is a local anesthetic commonly used in medical procedures. Lidocaine is also an antiarrhythmic agent, one that prevents or treats certain cardiac arrhythmias. Lidocaine works by preventing activity of the nerve or heart cell membrane. By blocking the entry of sodium ions the cell is unable to carry messages from cell to cell. Lidocaine is commonly used as a topical and local anesthetic. The drug must be injected in the proximity of the wound or surgery. Excessive quantities of lidocaine mainly result in central nervous system and cardiovascular effects-CNS effect usually occurs at lower blood plasma concentrations. CNS effects may include CNS excitation (nervousness, tingling around the mouth, tinnitus, tremor, dizziness, blurred vision, and seizures) followed by depression, and with increasingly heavier exposure: drowsiness, loss of consciousness, respiratory depression and apnea). Morphine is a drug that is used as an anesthetic. It works by affecting chemicals in the nervous system, which are involved in the sensation of pain. It can cause