Anhedonia
In psychology and psychiatry, anhedonia (
/ˌænhiˈdoʊniə/ an-hee-doh-nee-ə; Greek: ἀν- an-, "without" + ἡδονή hēdonē, "pleasure") is defined as the inability to experience pleasure from activities usually found enjoyable, e.g. hobbies, exercise, social interaction or sexual activity.
Anhedonia can be a characteristic of mental disorders including mood disorders, schizoaffective disorder, schizoid personality disorder and schizophrenia. Affected schizophrenic patients describe themselves as feeling emotionally empty.[1]
Mood disturbances are commonly observed in many psychiatric disorders. Disturbing mood changes may occur resultant to stressful life events and they are not uncommon during times of physical illness.[2] While anhedonia can be a feature of such mood changes, they are not mutually inclusive.
Contents |
[edit] Causes
Researchers theorize that anhedonia may result from the breakdown in the brain's reward system, involving the neurotransmitter dopamine. Studies by Paul Keedwell, MD, then of King's College, found that the brains of clinically depressed subjects had to work harder to process rewarding experiences.[3][4]
[edit] Significance in depression
As a clinical symptom in depression, anhedonia rates highly in making a diagnosis of this disorder. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) describes a "lack of interest or pleasure" but these can be hard to tell apart given that people become less interested in things which do not give them pleasure. The DSM criterion of weight loss is probably related, and many depressed people with this symptom describe a lack of enjoyment of food. People suffering from anhedonia in association with depression generally feel good in the morning and unhappy in the evenings and can portray any of the non-psychotic symptoms and signs of depression.[5]
[edit] Sexual anhedonia
Sexual anhedonia in males is also known as 'ejaculatory anhedonia'. This condition means that the person will ejaculate with no accompanying sense of pleasure.
The condition is most frequently found in males, but women can suffer from lack of pleasure when the body goes through the orgasm process as well.
Sexual anhedonia may be caused by:
- Hyperprolactinaemia[citation needed]
- Hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), also called inhibited sexual desire
- Low levels of the hormone testosterone[citation needed]
- Spinal cord injury
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Use (or previous use) of SSRI antidepressants[6]
- Use (or previous use) of antidopaminergic neuroleptics[7][8]
- Fatigue
- Physical illness
It is very uncommon that a neurological examination and blood tests can determine the cause of a specific case of sexual anhedonia.
Patients may be prescribed sustained-release bupropion to aid in treatment, which has been shown to relieve sexual dysfunction even in patients without depression.[9]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Hales R., Yudofsky S., Talbott J. 1999. Textbook of Psychiatry 3rd ed. Washington DC: The American Psychiatric Press.[page needed]
- ^ Gelder, Michael G.; Mayou, Richard; Geddes, John; Geddes, John (2005). Psychiatry (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press. pp. 2, 99. ISBN 978-0-19-852863-0.
- ^ "No Pleasure, No Reward -- Plenty of Depression" by John McManamy; URL accessed 2009-02-17[self-published source?]
- ^ Surguladze, S. (2003). "Neural systems underlying affective disorders". Advances in Psychiatric Treatment 9 (6): 446–55. doi:10.1192/apt.9.6.446.
- ^ Tomb, David A. (1 August 2007). Psychiatry. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-7817-7452-9. http://books.google.com/books?id=lt0-i8xLINoC. Retrieved 18 December 2010.
- ^ Csoka, Antonei; Bahrick, Audrey; Mehtonen, Olli-Pekka (2007). "Persistent Sexual Dysfunction after Discontinuation of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors". Journal of Sexual Medicine 5 (1): 227–233. doi:10.1111/j.1743-6109.2007.00630.x. PMID 18173768.
- ^ Tupala, E; Haapalinna, A; Viitamaa, T; Männistö, PT; Saano, V (1999). "Effects of repeated low dose administration and withdrawal of haloperidol on sexual behaviour of male rats". Pharmacology & toxicology 84 (6): 292–5. PMID 10401732.
- ^ Martin-Du Pan, R (1978). "Neuroleptics and sexual dysfunction in man. Neuroendocrine aspects". Schweizer Archiv fur Neurologie, Neurochirurgie und Psychiatrie = Archives suisses de neurologie, neurochirurgie et de psychiatrie 122 (2): 285–313. PMID 29337.
- ^ Crenshaw, Theresa L.; Goldberg, James P.; Stern, Warren C. (1987). "Pharmacologic modification of psychosexual dysfunction". Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy 13 (4): 239–52. doi:10.1080/00926238708403896. PMID 3121861.
[edit] External links
 |
Look up anhedonia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
- Anhedonia - Bipolar Disorder Symptoms
- No Pleasure, No Reward
- Forum: "Ejaculation without orgasm" forum (hisandherhealth.com) [1]
- Forum: "Ejaculatoryanhedonia.com" [2]
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
