Am J Psychiatry 1981; 138:1555-1562
Copyright © 1981 by American Psychiatric Association
Neuroendocrine and neurochemical measurements in depression
KL Davis, LE Hollister, AA Mathe, BM Davis, AB Rothpearl, KF Faull, JY Hsieh, JD Barchas and PA Berger
The authors performed dexamethasone suppression tests (DST), TRH infusions,
72-hour urine collections, and lumbar punctures on a group of male
depressed patients. Approximately 60% of the patients were DST positive and
33% had a blunted TSH response. Two biologic variables, the 8 a.m.
postdexamethasone cortisol and the postprobenecid CSF 5-
hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), accounted for over half of the variance
in the behavioral measure, the Hamilton score. Plasma cortisol elevation
was associated with high 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenyl glycol (MHPG) excretion;
TSH blunting was associated with low urinary MHPG excretion. Comprehensive
biologic measures showed certain significant interrelationships and
correlations with the severity of depression.
