Selegiline for Parkinson's disease.

Monoamine oxidase inhibitors that have been available in the United States are nonselective and thus act equally on peripheral and brain monoamine oxidase. Recently, selegiline, a selective monoamine oxidase inhibitor, has been approved for use in the management of Parkinson's disease. Clinical trials demonstrate that selegiline in combination with carbidopa/levodopa is effective in relieving symptoms and prolonging remission. The dosage of carbidopa/levodopa can usually be reduced, resulting in diminished side effects. Selegiline is relatively nontoxic and appears to be a valuable addition in the management of Parkinson's disease.

Improved micro-radioimmunoassay of digoxin in serum, with use of 125I-labeled digoxin.

A micro-radioimmunoassay of 125I-labeled digoxin is described in which 10-mul rather than 50-mul aliquots of sera are required. The method is a modification of a simplified, rapid, and accurate procedure, which is commercially available as a kit. There is excellent correlation between results by these two methods, in which lyophilized digoxin standards and insoluble antibody polymer are used. The digoxin concentration in capillary sera was not significantly different from that in the corresponding venous blood. It is clinically useful to monitor digoxin therapy in capillary sera, particularly in patients in whom blood sampling by venipuncture is inconvenient or difficult.