Title
Dexamethasone increases plasma free dopamine in man
UMMS Affiliation
Department of Psychiatry
Publication Date
1984-01-01
Document Type
Article
Subjects
Adrenal Cortex Hormones; Adult; Catecholamines; Dexamethasone; Dopamine; Epinephrine; Female; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Male; Mental Disorders; Norepinephrine; Prolactin
Disciplines
Psychiatry
Abstract
In man, unconjugated plasma DA is normally undetectable or present in minute amounts. Twelve medication-free volunteers received a 1 mg dose of dexamethasone which produced pronounced increases of plasma free DA but not of other catecholamines. Mean plasma free dopamine levels after dexamethasone at 8 a.m. (155 +/- 102 pg/ml) and 4 p.m. (163 +/- 70 pg/ml) were significantly higher (p less than 0.001) than those at 8 a.m. (50 +/- 18 pg/ml) and 4 p.m. (42 +/- 7 pg/ml) before dexamethasone. Although the mechanism of increased dopaminergic activity after a dose of dexamethasone remains for future research, the data presented in this paper may explain the observations that corticosteroids lower prolactin levels and may induce psychiatric disturbances, as well as the finding that depressed patients with high postdexamethasone cortisol levels are frequently psychotic.
Source
J Psychiatr Res. 1984;18(3):217-23.
Journal/Book/Conference Title
Journal of psychiatric research
Related Resources
PubMed ID
6492009
Repository Citation
Rothschild AJ, Langlais PJ, Schatzberg AF, Walsh FX, Cole JO, Bird ED. (1984). Dexamethasone increases plasma free dopamine in man. Psychiatry Publications and Presentations. Retrieved from https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/psych_pp/16