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Is Elevated Striatal Dopamine Function a Prodromal Sign of Schizophrenia?
Andor E. Simon, MD;
Daniel Umbricht, MD
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It was a pleasure reading the article by Howes et al,1 who report an increase of striatal dopamine activity in patients fulfilling prodromal criteria for schizophrenia. They demonstrate that striatal dopamine activity was correlated with the severity of prodromal symptoms and with the severity of neuropsychological impairment in subjects with at-risk mental states (ARMS). However, as not all of these subjects go on to develop psychosis, Howes et al propose that elevated dopamine activity may also be a correlate of increased vulnerability to psychosis and conclude that presynaptic striatal function may be a promising target for future drug development in the treatment of psychotic disorders.
Prospective studies of patients meeting ARMS criteria initially reported 1-year rates of transition to psychosis of 40% to 54%, but lately reported rates have dropped to 15%. In our Swiss Bruderholz Study of 196 individuals referred for a . . . [Full Text of this Article]
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Elevated Striatal Dopamine Function Linked to Prodromal Signs of Schizophrenia
Oliver D. Howes, Andrew J. Montgomery, Marie-Claude Asselin, Robin M. Murray, Isabel Valli, Paul Tabraham, Elvira Bramon-Bosch, Lucia Valmaggia, Louise Johns, Matthew Broome, Philip K. McGuire, and Paul M. Grasby
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