Plasma norepinephrine in chronic schizophrenia

Article Abstract:

Norepinephrine is one of the catecholamines, which are biologically active compounds that affect the nervous and cardiovascular systems, the metabolic rate, smooth muscle, and body temperature. Disturbances in the norepinephrine metabolism of the brain have been associated with mood disorders. Research has also implicated disturbances in noradrenergic function in schizophrenia. Autopsies of schizophrenics have detected excessive levels of norepinephrine and related metabolites in various brain tissues. Other studies have reported elevated levels of norepinephrine or its metabolites in blood plasma and in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). To further investigate this issue, blood plasma levels of norepinephrine were measured in 14 subjects diagnosed with chronic schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder; levels were measured while the subjects were standing and while they were at rest, and the difference between these two values was determined. The extent of schizophrenic psychopathology in the patients was noted, and observations were also made of CSF levels of norepinephrine and homovanillic acid, a dopamine metabolite. Dopamine is also a catecholamine associated with some mental disorders. Thirty-three control subjects who were matched for sex and age to the patients were also tested, and all subjects were not taking any drugs during the testing. Significantly higher levels of norepinephrine, both resting and standing, were found in the schizophrenic patients. Correlations were also found between plasma norepinephrine levels and clinical symptoms, which suggests a relationship between abnormally high norepinephrine and the disease process. A positive correlation was found between CSF and resting plasma norepinephrine levels, while negative correlations were found between homovanillic acid and both resting and standing plasma norepinephrine levels. Further research is recommended to investigate the role of norepinephrine levels in schizophrenia. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Measurement, Physiological aspects, Noradrenaline, Norepinephrine

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Dyskinetic movements, cognitive impairment, and negative symptoms in elderly neuropsychiatric patients

Article Abstract:

Tardive dyskinesia, a side effect of antipsychotic drugs, is characterized by slow, rhythmical movements that are involuntary. Other symptoms that have been observed in some studies are cognitive impairments and negative symptoms. The relationship of these three features was studied among 49 elderly men residing in a psychiatric facility who had received antipsychotic drugs over a long period of time - on average, 30 years. Nine patients had undergone lobotomy between 1950 and 1957; another patient had shot himself in the head, which had damaged the frontal lobes of his brain. Twenty-five had tardive dyskinesia. The cognitive status of the patients was assessed with the Neurobehavioral Cognitive Status examination; evaluation was also made using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, which measures symptoms such as emotional withdrawal, motor retardation, and blunted affect. When results were analyzed a stronger association was observed between tardive dyskinesia and cognitive impairments in this patient group than with negative symptoms. Lobotomized patients had a lower incidence of tardive dyskinesia. Visible brain tissue abnormalities were less frequent among those with tardive dyskinesia, and no association between these brain abnormalities and the disorder was found. The authors discuss the possible role of dysfunction of the striatum in the brain in the manifestation of tardive dyskinesia. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Demographic aspects, Psychotropic drugs, Tardive dyskinesia, Drug-induced dyskinesia

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High prevalence of visual hallucinations in research subjects with chronic schizophrenia

Article Abstract:

The number of visual hallucinations is high in severely ill hospitalized subjects with chronic schizophrenia. A review of 100 discharged subjects revealed that 32 percent had visual hallucinations and a prospective examination of an additional 43 subjects revealed a history of visual hallucinations in 56 percent. In the group of patients with visual hallucinations, the history of visual hallucinations in 43 percent was first documented in the hospital research ward. The study suggests that clinicians frequently do not inquire about visual hallucinations in patients with chronic schizophrenia. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Research, Diagnosis, Psychiatric hospitals, Hallucinations and illusions, Hallucinations

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