Related articles: Anedonia
Definition
Anhedonia is the loss of interest or the inability to feel pleasure in performing activities that are usually gratifying; it can therefore be seen as a form of flattening of the emotional and affective state.
Anhedonia can involve one or more areas, such as, for example, food, sex, social interactions and somatosensory experiences.
Anhedonia is a typical symptom of diseases such as major depression, schizophrenia and some mood disorders and personality with psychotic manifestations. It can also be found in cases of dementia.
Other causes of deprivation of hedonism or joy of life are alcoholism and substance abuse.
The etiopathogenetic mechanisms underlying anhedonia are not yet completely clear, but it is not excluded that this symptom may depend on the interaction of multiple predisposing factors (genetic, environmental, cultural and social).
Possible Causes * of Anhedonia
- Autism
- Vascular dementia
- Major depression
- Dysthymia
- Bipolar disorder
- Cyclothymic disorder
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Huntington's disease
- Parkinson's disease
- Schizophrenia
- Asperger syndrome
