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Serum dopamine-β-hydroxylase in chronic alcoholism

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 July 2009

John L. Sullivan ,
Charles N. Stanfield ,
Saul Schanberg  and
Jesse Cavenar
John L. Sullivan*
Affiliation:
Psychiatry Service, Veteran's Administration Hospital, Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina
Charles N. Stanfield
Affiliation:
Psychiatry Service, Veteran's Administration Hospital, Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina
Saul Schanberg
Affiliation:
Psychiatry Service, Veteran's Administration Hospital, Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina
Jesse Cavenar
Affiliation:
Psychiatry Service, Veteran's Administration Hospital, Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, Duke University Medical Center, North Carolina
*
1Address for correspondence: Dr J. L. Sullivan, Psychiatry Service, Veteran's Administration Hospital, 508 Fulton Street, Durham, North Carolina 27705, U.S.A.
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Synopsis

Previous reports suggest that high serum dopamine-β-hydroxylase (DBH) activity may be associated with vulnerability to alcoholism. However, there are also contradictory studies in the literature. Therefore we measured serum DBH in chronic alcoholics followed for 12 months in a treatment programme after psychiatric hospitalization for acute alcoholism. Mean serum DBH activity in the alcoholics was unchanged from controls at 3 months, 6 months and 12 months following hospital discharge. These data imply that serum DBH activity does not provide a useful metabolic screen for vulnerability to chronic alcoholism. However, prospective studies of patients at high risk to develop alcoholism will be helpful in further clarification of this issue.

Type
Preliminary Communication
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 8 , Issue 3 , August 1978 , pp. 505 - 508
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1978

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