TCA Full Form

What is the full form of TCA ?

The full form of TCA is “TriCyclic Antidepressant screen. This is used to test the amount of tricyclic antidepressant present in the blood or urine. It is one of the types of Antidepressants. Antidepressants are the medicines that treat depression and serious illness. It is the best antidepressant and causes less side effects when compared to other antidepressants. There are several types of antidepressants and each of them work in different ways. These medicines can be helpful in normal doses but taking too much can be fatal. It is a common antidepressant which is less effective or ineffective over time. The commonly prescribed TCAs are Doxepin, Nortriptyline, Amitriptyline, Imipramine, Desipramine. TCA has to be carefully dosed, because overdose of TCA results in many deaths in the United States.

This Story also Contains

1. What is the full form of TCA ?
2. Uses of tricyclic antidepressant screen
3. Symptoms of tricyclic antidepressant overdose
4. Tricarboxylic acid

Uses of tricyclic antidepressant screen

TCA screen is mainly used to:

• Help health care providers prescribe the right dose of TCA.

• It finds out if anyone is misusing TCA.

• This test checks for the presence of different prescription and illegal drugs.

• It diagnoses a TCA overdose and proper treatment of overdose may save the life.

Symptoms of tricyclic antidepressant overdose

Overdose of TCA may leads to:

• Trouble thinking

• Confusion

• Sedation

• Hallucinations

• Serious changes in heartbeat

• Low blood pressures

• Seizure

• Blurred vision

• Constipation

• drowsiness

• Dry mouth

• Body temperature is too high which is known as hyperthermia

• Dilated pupils

• Weight loss

• Loss of appetite

Tricarboxylic acid

It is also known as tricarboxylic acid cycle which is also known as krebs cycle and citric acid cycle. It is a series of chemical reactions which is used by all the aerobic organisms. It is a second stage of cellular respiration which is a three stage process by which living cells break down the organic fuel molecules in the presence of oxygen to collect the energy that is used for their growth. It is a metabolic process which occurs in most plants, animals and many bacteria and also carried out in the matrix of intracellular structures called mitochondria. It plays a key role in the breakdown of glucose and other fatty acids and some amino acids. TCA cycle is used to convert acetyl coenzyme A(CoA) into carbon dioxide and energy. The TCA cycle consists of 8 different steps. They are as follows:

• The cycle is initiated when acetyl CoA reacts with the compound oxaloacetate to form citrate and to release coenzyme A.

• Citrate is rearranged to form isocitrate.

• Isocitrate loses a molecule of carbon dioxide and undergoes oxidation to form alpha ketoglutarate.

• alpha ketoglutarate loses a molecule of carbon dioxide and undergoes oxidation to form succinyl CoA.

• Succinyl CoA is enzymatically converted to succinate.

• Succinate is oxidised and forms fumarate.

• Fumarate is hydrated to form malate.

• Malate is oxidised to form oxaloacetate.

Other Full Form of Tricyclic Antidepressant

TCA - Tricyclic Antidepressant

TCA - Tricarboxylic acid