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Salvador A. Contreras, MD
Psychiatry Service Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans' Hospital 7400 Merton Minter Blvd San Antonio, TX 78284

James W. Maas, MD; Ermias Seleshi, MD; Charles L. Bowden, MD
Department of Psychiatry The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio 7703 Floyd Curl Dr San Antonio, TX 78284

Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1987;44(12):1109-1110.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor.—

There is a current surge of interest in studying homovanillic acid (HVA) levels as a putative index of brain dopaminergic activity in psychosis and as a gauge of the dopaminergic blocking effects of neuroleptics in the central nervous system (CNS).^1,2 Davidson et al³ found robust increases in the plasma HVA level 24 hours after administration of a loading dose of haloperidol. Pickar et al^1,4 have consistently found significant decreases in the plasma HVA level with more prolonged administration (three to five weeks). Previously, Harris et al⁵ observed increased levels of plasma HVA during two weeks of neuroleptic treatment. Although inconclusive, in the aggregate these findings suggest an initial rise in circulating levels of HVA, followed by a subsequent decrease with prolonged administration of neuroleptics.

We now report that the urinary HVA level increases in schizophrenic patients after three weeks of treatment with haloperidol. . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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