Subject(s)
Osteoarthritis , Analgesics/therapeutic use , Anti-Inflammatory Agents/therapeutic use , Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/therapeutic use , Cyclooxygenase Inhibitors/therapeutic use , Female , Humans , Male , Osteoarthritis/diagnosis , Osteoarthritis/etiology , Osteoarthritis/therapy , SteroidsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The stability and developmental variation of several neurobiological measures in boys with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were examined. METHODS: The prolactin (PRL) response to fenfluramine (FEN) challenge was used to assess central serotonergic (5-HT) functioning in 10 8-11-year-old boys with ADHD. In addition, platelet 5-HT, as well as plasma levels of the catecholamine metabolites 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) and homovanillic acid were ascertained. These neurobiological variables were reassessed in the same children 2-3 years later using the identical procedures. RESULTS: The PRL response to FEN challenge was the only measure found to be stable across the evaluations (r = .58), although the magnitude of the response decreased significantly with age. Plasma MHPG level significantly increased with age. CONCLUSIONS: Central 5-HT function, as measured by the PRL response to FEN, may represent a stable trait. The importance of considering developmental factors when interpreting neurobiological data is discussed.
Subject(s)
Aging/physiology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/physiopathology , Serotonin/physiology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/blood , Blood Platelets/chemistry , Brain/growth & development , Brain/metabolism , Catecholamines/metabolism , Child , Child Development , Fenfluramine , Homovanillic Acid/blood , Humans , Longitudinal Studies , Male , Methoxyhydroxyphenylglycol/blood , Prolactin/drug effects , Serotonin/blood , Serotonin Agents , Time FactorsABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To explore the relationship between central serotonergic (5-HT) function and history of parental aggression in aggressive and nonaggressive boys with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). METHOD: History of psychiatric symptoms was assessed in the biological parents of 41 boys with ADHD. The relationship between 5-HT function in aggressive and nonaggressive probands, as assessed via the prolactin response to fenfluramine (FEN) challenge, and parental history of aggression was examined. RESULTS: Aggressive boys with a parental history of aggressive behavior had a significantly lower prolactin response to FEN challenge than aggressive boys without a parental history of aggression. Nonaggressive boys had a prolactin response midway between those of the two aggressive subgroups, and their prolactin response did not vary as a function of parental aggression. Children subdivided on the basis of parental history of other psychiatric symptoms did not differ in their response to the FEN challenge. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate an association between parent aggressive behavior and lower 5-HT function in aggressive boys with ADHD but do not indicate the extent to which this association is environmentally and/or genetically transmitted. There may be different neurochemical mechanisms in familial and nonfamilial aggressive children, which have clinical implications for pharmacological interventions.
Subject(s)
Aggression , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/blood , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/psychology , Parents/psychology , Serotonin/blood , Adult , Child , Female , Humans , Male , Prolactin/bloodABSTRACT
Changes in plasma levels of prolactin (PRL), homovanillic acid (HVA), and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) following insertion of an indwelling catheter into a forearm vein were assessed in 11 boys with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Results indicated decreases in plasma PRL and HVA, but not MHPG, from the time of needle stick until 105 min post-insertion. These data indicate a significant increase in plasma PRL and HVA in children following needle stick which gradually decreases over a 1.5-2-h period. These stress-induced changes indicate that values obtained immediately after needle insertion cannot be assumed to accurately reflect baseline levels.
Subject(s)
Homovanillic Acid/blood , Methoxyhydroxyphenylglycol/blood , Needlestick Injuries/blood , Prolactin/blood , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/diagnosis , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/psychology , Catheters, Indwelling , Child , Humans , Male , Time FactorsABSTRACT
The results of several studies have indicated an inverse relationship between central serotonergic (5-HT) mechanisms and aggression in animals and adults, but studies in children have yielded conflicting results. This study assessed 5-HT function, using a fenfluramine (FEN) challenge procedure, in an attempt to replicate a previously reported enhancement of the prolactin (PRL) response to FEN in aggressive relative to nonaggressive ADHD boys. The study failed to replicate the previous finding. Samples from both studies were then examined to reconcile the discrepant findings. The samples differed significantly in age. The entire group (n = 50) was then divided into older and younger subgroups and reanalyzed using a two-way (age-group x aggression) analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) controlling for plasma medication level. The ANCOVA generated a significant age-group x aggression interaction. Young aggressive boys had a significantly greater PRL response to FEN than young nonaggressive boys, but no such difference existed in the older age-group. These findings raise the possibility of different developmental trajectories in 5-HT function between aggressive and nonaggressive boys.
Subject(s)
Aggression/psychology , Aging/psychology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/physiopathology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/psychology , Serotonin/physiology , Child , Fenfluramine , Humans , Male , Prolactin/blood , Psychiatric Status Rating Scales , Selective Serotonin Reuptake InhibitorsSubject(s)
Child Behavior Disorders/drug therapy , Fenfluramine/pharmacology , Prolactin/metabolism , Child , Female , Humans , Male , Sex Factors , Time FactorsABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: This study was designed to assess central serotonergic (5-HT) function in aggressive and nonaggressive boys with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. METHOD: Prolactin response to a challenge dose of the 5-HT agonist d,l-fenfluramine was assessed in 25 7-11-year-old boys with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder who were divided into aggressive and nonaggressive subgroups. In addition, the subgroups were compared on plasma catecholamine metabolites and platelet 5-HT. RESULTS: The aggressive group had a significantly greater prolactin response to the fenfluramine challenge than the nonaggressive subgroup. The groups did not differ on peripheral measures of neurotransmitter function. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that aggressive and nonaggressive children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder differ in central 5-HT functioning.
Subject(s)
Aggression/physiology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/physiopathology , Receptors, Serotonin/physiology , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/blood , Child , Fenfluramine/pharmacology , Humans , Male , Prolactin/blood , Receptors, Serotonin/drug effectsABSTRACT
A 27-year-old woman undergoing long-term hemodialysis developed cutaneous calcifications on her fingers. A skin biopsy specimen showed that the deposits were calcium oxalate. To our knowledge, only one previous article has reported pathologic and crystallographic studies on calcifications of the skin resulting from dialysis oxalosis. We speculate that vitamin C supplements, liberal tea consumption, an increased serum ionized calcium concentration, and the long duration of hemodialysis contributed to the production of these deposits.
Subject(s)
Calcinosis/etiology , Calcium Oxalate/analysis , Renal Dialysis/adverse effects , Skin Diseases/etiology , Skin/chemistry , Adult , Biopsy , Female , Fingers , HumansABSTRACT
The association between splenic abnormalities, congenital heart defects, and abnormalities in the location and shape of other viscera is well established in the literature. Intestinal atresia is rarely found with either the polysplenia or asplenia syndromes. We studied a case of polysplenia syndrome accompanied by duodenal atresia; we believe that duodenal atresia is a rare but predictable complication of the polysplenia complex.
