Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2brh9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T08:12:52.385Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Psychotic and Depressive Symptoms in Parkinson's Disease a Study of the Growth Hormone Response to Apomorphine

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

John D. C. Mellers ,
Niall P. Quinn  and
Maria A. Ron
John D. C. Mellers*
Affiliation:
Section of Neuropsychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London
Niall P. Quinn
Affiliation:
Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London
Maria A. Ron
Affiliation:
Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London
*
Dr Mellers, Section of Neuropsychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AF
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background

The growth hormone (GH) response to apomorphine, thought to reflect central dopaminergic receptor sensitivity, has been reported as enhanced in acute schizophrenia. We investigated this response in relation to the psychotic episodes associated with Parkinson's disease (PD).

Method

The GH response to apomorphine was measured in three groups of patients with Parkinson's disease: those currently psychotic (n = 9), those with a past history of psychosis (n = 7) and those who had never been psychotic (n = 8).

Results

Apomorphine-induced GH response was not related to psychosis but was unexpectedly associated with measures of depression.

Conclusions

Visual hallucinations were a prominent feature in the psychotic patients and the atypical nature of these psychoses might explain why we found no evidence of dopaminergic sensitivity. Serotonergic dysfunction would be in keeping with this. Dopaminergic mechanisms may contribute to the minor depressive symptomatology seen in PD.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 167 , Issue 4 , October 1995 , pp. 522 - 526
Copyright
Copyright © 1995 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agid, Y., Javoy-Agid, F. & Ruberg, M. (1987) Biochemistry of neurotransmitters in Parkinson's disease. In Movement Disorders 2 (eds Marsden, C. D. & Fahn, S.), pp. 166–230. London: Butterworths.Google Scholar
Ansseau, M., Von Frenckell, R., Cerfontaine, J. L., et al (1988) Blunted response of growth hormone to clonidine and apomorphine in endogenous depression. British Journal of Psychiatry, 153, 65–71.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Birkmayer, W., Danielczyk, W., Neumayer, E., et al (1974) Nucleus ruber and L-dopa psychosis: biochemical post-mortem findings. Journal of Neural Transmission, 35, 93–116.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, R. G. & MacCarthy, B. (1990) Psychiatric morbidity in patients with Parkinson's disease. Psychological Medicine, 20, 77–87.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Canter, C. J., De La Torre, R. & Mier, M. A. (1961) A method of evaluating disability in Parkinson's disease. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 133, 143–147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cheng, A. V. T., Ferrier, I. N., Morris, C. M., et al (1991) Cortical serotonin-S2 receptor binding in Lewy body dementia, Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's diseases. Journal of the Neurological Sciences, 106, 50–55.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Corn, T., Hale, A. S., Thompson, C., et al (1984) A comparison of the GH responses to clonidine and apomorphine in the same endogenously depressed patients. British Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 636–639.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cummings, J. L. (1992) Neuropsychiatric complications of drug treatment of Parkinson's disease. In Parkinson's Disease. Neurobehavioural Aspects (eds Huber, S. J. & Cummings, J. L.), pp. 313–327. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Ferrier, I. N., Johnstone, E. C. & Crow, T. J. (1984) Hormonal effects of apomorphine in schizophrenia. British Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 349–357.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Folstein, M. F., Folstein, S. E. & McHugh, P. R. (1975) Mini-Mental State Examination. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 12, 189–198.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gibb, W. R. G. & Lees, A. J. (1988) The relevance of the Lewy body to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, 51, 745–752.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoehn, M. M. & Yahr, M. D. (1967) Parkinsonism: onset, progression and mortality. Neurology, 17, 427–442.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jimerson, D. C., Cutler, N. R., Post, R. M., et al (1984) Neuroendocrine responses to apomorphine in depressed and healthy control subjects. Psychiatry Research, 13, 1–12.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Klawans, H. L., Goetz, C., Nausieda, P. A., et al (1977) Levodopa-induced dopamine receptor hypersensitivity. Annals of Neurology, 2, 125–129.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pitchot, W., Ansseau, M., Moreno, A. G., et al (1992) Dopaminergic function in panic disorder: comparison with major and minor depression. Biological Psychiatry, 32, 1004–1011.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sadzot, B., Baraban, J. M., Glennon, R. A., et al (1989) Hallucinogenic drug interactions at human brain 5-HT2 receptors: implications for treating LSD-induced hallucinogenesis. Psychopharmacology, 98, 495–499.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Stein, M. B., Heuser, I. J., Juncos, J. L., et al (1990) Anxiety disorders in patients with Parkinson's disease. American Journal of Psychiatry, 147, 217–220.Google ScholarPubMed
Webster, D. D. (1968) Critical analysis of the disability in Parkinson's disease. Modern Treatments, 5, 257–282.Google ScholarPubMed
Wieck, A., Kumar, R., Hirst, A. D., et al (1991) Increased sensitivity of dopamine receptors and recurrence of affective psychosis after childbirth. British Medical Journal, 303, 613–616.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wing, J. K., Cooper, J. E. & Sartorius, N. (1973) The Measurement and Classification of Psychiatric Symptoms. An Instruction for the Present State Examination and Catego Program. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Zemlan, F. P., Hirschowitz, J. & Garver, D. L. (1986) Relation of clinical symptoms to apomorphine-stimulated growth hormone release in mood-incongruent psychotic patients. Archives of General Psychiatry, 43, 1162–1167.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Submit a response

eLetters

No eLetters have been published for this article.