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Pharmacology of Substance Abuse Flashcards

7 cards from real CADC practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 Pharmacology of Substance Abuse flashcards as text

  1. A counselor learns that a client is using gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB). Which withdrawal scenario would be most medically dangerous?

    Answer: Abrupt cessation after heavy daily use

    Abrupt GHB cessation after heavy daily use can cause life-threatening withdrawal including seizures, psychosis, and autonomic instability comparable to severe alcohol withdrawal.

  2. The 'set and setting' concept is most pharmacologically relevant when discussing which class of substances?

    Answer: Classic psychedelics (LSD, psilocybin)

    Classic psychedelics (serotonergic 5-HT2A agonists) produce highly variable experiences heavily influenced by mindset ('set') and environment ('setting') due to their modulatory rather than direct euphoric effects.

  3. Which statement about inhalants is pharmacologically accurate?

    Answer: Inhalants act as CNS depressants through GABA enhancement and NMDA antagonism, similar to alcohol

    Most inhalants (toluene, nitrous oxide, etc.) act as CNS depressants through GABA potentiation and/or NMDA receptor blockade, with extremely rapid onset due to high lipid solubility and pulmonary absorption.

  4. A client taking buprenorphine/naloxone (Suboxone) attempts to inject the medication to get high. What prevents them from experiencing a significant opioid effect?

    Answer: Buprenorphine's ceiling effect and naloxone's activation when injected

    When injected, naloxone (normally inactive sublingually) becomes bioavailable and precipitates opioid withdrawal, and buprenorphine's partial agonist ceiling limits euphoria — deterring injection misuse.

  5. Which metabolic pathway converts alcohol (ethanol) into acetaldehyde, the primary toxic byproduct?

    Answer: Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) oxidation

    Alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) in the liver converts ethanol to acetaldehyde, which is then metabolized to acetate by aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) — the enzyme blocked by disulfiram.

  6. Which term describes the phenomenon where a previously neutral stimulus (e.g., drug paraphernalia) triggers intense craving due to learned associations with drug use?

    Answer: Conditioned cue reactivity

    Conditioned cue reactivity is a classically conditioned response where environmental stimuli associated with past drug use elicit craving, withdrawal-like states, or drug-seeking behavior.

  7. Acamprosate (Campral) helps maintain abstinence in alcohol use disorder primarily by:

    Answer: Stabilizing glutamate (NMDA) signaling dysregulated by chronic alcohol use

    Acamprosate modulates NMDA glutamate receptor activity, counteracting the glutamatergic hyperexcitability and neuronal hyperactivity that persists during protracted alcohol withdrawal.