Schizophrenia, Psychosis, and Cerebral Spinal Fluid Homovanillic Acid Concentrations

Neuroleptic drugs block brain dopamine receptors and are effective in treating psychoses of diverse origins. This finding has become a cornerstone of the dopamine theory of schizophrenia, but clinical studies relating schizophrenia, per se, to brain dopamine metabolism have ranged from controversial...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Schizophrenia bulletin 1997, Vol.23 (1), p.147-154
Main Authors: Maas, James W, Bowden, Charles L, Miller, Alexander L, Javors, Martin A, Funderburg, Linda G, Berman, Nancy, Weintraub, Susan T
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Aged
Biological and medical sciences
Brain - metabolism
Cerebrospinal Fluid
Dopamine
Dopamine - metabolism
Homovanillic Acid
Homovanillic Acid - cerebrospinal fluid
Human
Humans
Inpatient
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Psychoses
Psychotic Disorders - cerebrospinal fluid
Psychotic Disorders - diagnosis
Psychotic Disorders - psychology
Reference Values
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia - cerebrospinal fluid
Schizophrenia - diagnosis
Schizophrenic Psychology
Severity (Disorders)
Citations: Items that cite this one
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Summary:Neuroleptic drugs block brain dopamine receptors and are effective in treating psychoses of diverse origins. This finding has become a cornerstone of the dopamine theory of schizophrenia, but clinical studies relating schizophrenia, per se, to brain dopamine metabolism have ranged from controversial to negative. This article presents new evidence that cerebrospinal fluid levels of the dopamine metabolite homovanillic acid are related to the severity of psychosis in schizophrenia. These results support the concept that homovanillic acid levels in cerebrospinal fluid vary as a function of psychosis rather than being related to the diagnosis of schizophrenia per se.
ISSN:0586-7614
1745-1701
DOI:10.1093/schbul/23.1.147