Dr. Roxanne Dryden-Edwards is an adult, child, and adolescent psychiatrist. She is a former Chair of the Committee on Developmental Disabilities for the American Psychiatric Association, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, and Medical Director of the National Center for Children and Families in Bethesda, Maryland.
Dr. Shiel received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from the University of Notre Dame. There he was involved in research in radiation biology and received the Huisking Scholarship. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Medicine, he completed his Internal Medicine residency and Rheumatology fellowship at the University of California, Irvine. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology.
There are few medications that are considered effective in treating drug
addiction. Those are currently limited to the treatment of alcoholism, as well
as opioid, and
nicotine addiction. Please read the Alcohol and Teens article for information
about the medications that manage alcohol addiction. Effective medication treatment for
other addictions is primarily limited to address addiction to opiates and
nicotine. Methadone, levo-alpha acetyl methadol (LAAM), and buprenorphine
hydrochloride are non-sedating, non-intoxicating opiates that treat opiate
addiction by preventing symptoms of withdrawal from heroin and other opiates.
Naltrexone blocks the effects of opiates and is therefore useful in both
treatment of overdose of opiates and in longer-term treatment. Nicotine
addiction is often medically addressed by medications that replace nicotine in
the form of patches, gum, or nasal spray. Buproprion, which was originally found
to be an effective antidepressant, has been found to decrease patients' cravings
for nicotine.
The National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) recommends that treatment of
substance abuse: be readily available when the addicted person is ready to
enroll; be tailored to the complex, multiple and changing needs (for example medical,
mental health, social, legal, and family) of each individual; and consider the use of medication treatment when appropriate and include random drug testing. There are numerous individual treatments for chemical dependency in teens. Relapse prevention uses methods for recognizing and amending problem behaviors, as well as providing support to the adolescent in his or her community. Individualized
drug counseling specifically emphasizes short-term behavioral goals in an
attempt to help the individual reduce or stop the use of drugs altogether, as
well as maintaining their safety. Some such programs include drug testing. Twelve-step programs like Narcotics Anonymous are individualized drug-counseling methods. Motivational enhancement therapy encourages the teen to increase their desire to participate in therapy. Stimulus control refers to a treatment method that teaches the person to stay away from situations that are associated with substance abuse and to replace those situations with activities that are contrary to using drugs. Urge control is an approach to changing patterns that lead to drug use. Social control involves family members and other significant others of the addict in treatment.
Family interventions for drug addiction that tend to be effective for teens
include multidimensional family therapy (MDFT), group therapy, and multifamily
educational intervention (MFE). MDFT has been found to be quite effective.
Longer-term residential treatment of three to five months that addresses peer
relationships, educational problems, and family issues is often used in treating
substance abuse in teens.
For youths in the first stage of drug use, where they have not yet used drugs, preventative measures are used. Therefore, limiting access to drugs, addressing any risk factors of the youth or family, as well as optimal parental supervision and expression regarding expectations is often recommended. The approach to those who have experimented with drugs is not minimized by drug treatment counselors, social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental-health professionals, since infrequent use can progress to the more serious stages of use if not addressed. Therefore, professionals recommend that the youth be thoroughly educated about the effects and risks of drugs, receive fair but firm limits on the use of substances, and that the user be referred for brief counseling, a self-help group, and/or family support group. Teens that have progressed to the more advanced stages of drug addiction are typically treated intensively, often including inpatient drug treatment (drug rehab) and involves a combination of the medication, individual, and familial interventions already described above.
HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is the cause of AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). HIV is a type of virus called a retrovirus, which infects humans when it comes in contact with a break in the skin or tissues such as those that line the vagina, anal area, mouth, or eyes.
Alcoholism is a disease that includes alcohol craving and continued drinking despite repeated alcohol-related problems, such as losing a job or getting into trouble with the law.
Drug-induced liver diseases are diseases of the liver that are caused by physician-prescribed medications, OTC medications, vitamins, hormones, herbs, illicit (“recreational”) drugs, and environmental toxins. There are three types of liver toxicity; dose-dependent toxicity, idiosyncratic toxicity, and drug allergy. The types of liver disease drugs cause include: mild elevations of blood levels of liver enzymes, hepatitis, necrosis, cholestasis, steatosis, cirrhosis, mixed disease, fulminant hepatitis, and blood clots.
Suicide is the process of intentionally ending one's own life. Approximately 1 million people worldwide commit suicide each year, and 10 million to 20 million attempt suicide annually.
Drug addiction is a chronic disease that causes drug-seeking behavior and drug use despite negative consequences to the user and those around him. Though the initial decision to use drugs is voluntary, changes in the brain caused by repeated drug abuse can affect a person's self-control and ability to make the right decisions and increase the urge to take drugs. Drug abuse and addiction are preventable.
Smoking is an addiction. More than 430,000 deaths occur each year in the U.S. from smoking related illnesses. Secondhand smoke or "passive smoke" also harm family members, coworkers, and others around smokers. There are a number of techniques available to assist people who want to quit smoking.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a behavioral disorder characterized by the symptoms hyperactivity, impulsivity, and inattention. Treatment for ADHD may involve behavioral therapy and psychostimulant or antidepressant medication.
Alcohol is the most frequently used drug by American teenagers. Teens that drink are more likely to drive under the influence, have unprotected sex, and use other drugs, like marijuana, cocaine, and heroin. Symptoms of alcohol abuse in teens include lying, breaking curfew, becoming verbally or physically abusive toward others, making excuses, smelling like alcohol, having mood swings, and stealing.
Child abuse falls into four categories: neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and emotional abuse. There are certain risk factors that predispose a child to being abused and an adult to abusing a child. Risk factors for children are age, children with learning disabilities, adopted and foster children, children with congenital abnormalities, and a past history of abuse. Parental risk factors include young or single parents, those who suffered abuse themselves, adults with substance-abuse problems or psychiatric disease, and those who didn't graduate from high school.
Childhood depression can interfere with social activities, interests, schoolwork and family life. Symptoms and signs include anger, social withdrawal, vocal outbursts, fatigue, physical complaints, and thoughts of suicide. Treatment may involve psychotherapy and medication.
Good parenting helps foster empathy, honesty, self-reliance, self-control, kindness, cooperation, and cheerfulness, says Steinberg, a distinguished professor of psychology at Temple University in Philadelphia. It also promotes intellectual curiosity, motivation, and desire to achieve. It helps protect children from developing anxiety, depression, eating disorders, antisocial behavior, and alcohol and drug abuse.
About 5 million children and adolescents in the U.S. suffer from a serious mental illness such as eating disorders, anxiety disorders, disruptive behavior disorders, pervasive development disorders, elimination disorders, learning disorders, schizophrenia, tic disorders, and mood disorders. Symptoms of mental illness include frequent outbursts of anger, hyperactivity, fear of gaining weight, excessive worrying, frequent temper tantrums, and hearing voices that aren't there. Treatment may involve medication, psychotherapy, and creative therapies.
Anabolic steroids are synthetic substances that are related to testosterone and promote skeletal muscle growth and the development of male sexual characteristics in both men and women. In the 1930s, it was discovered that anabolic steroids could promote skeletal muscle growth in lab animals, which lead to anabolic steroid abuse by bodybuilders and weight lifters.
Nicotine is delivered to the brain through smoking, chewing, or sniffing tobacco. Nicotine is an addictive agent. Common names for nicotine products include smokes, cigs, butts, chew, dip, spit, or snuff. Habitual nicotine use leads to many debilitating medical conditions.
Depression in teenagers may be caused by many factors. Symptoms of teen depression include apathy, irresponsible behavior, sadness, sudden drop in grades, withdrawal from friends, and alcohol and drug use. Treatment of depression in adolescents may involve psychotherapy and medications.
Children's health is focused on the well-being of children from conception through adolescence. There are many aspects of children's health, including growth and development, illnesses, injuries, behavior, mental illness, family health and community health.
Teenagers recognize that they are developmentally between child and adult. Teen health prevention includes maintaining a healthy diet, exercising regularly, preventing injuries and screening annually for potential health conditions that could adversely affect teenage health.
Kids Health RSS
Healthy Living Tips
This site complies with the