Citation

Kaufman J, Birmaher B, Perel J, Dahl RE, Stull S, Brent D, Trubnick L, al-Shabbout M, Ryan ND. Biol. Psychiatry 1998; 44(10): 973-981.

Affiliation

Yale University, Department of Psychiatry, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1998, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

9821561

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The goal of this study was to examine serotonergic functioning and concomitant clinical and familial correlates in depressed abused children. METHODS: L-5-Hydroxytryptophan (L-5-HTP) (0.8 mg/kg) was administered intravenously to 10 depressed abused (MDD-AB), 10 depressed nonabused (MDD-NA), and 10 normal control nonabused (NC-NA) children. The children in the two nonabused cohorts represent a small matched subset of children from a larger interlocking study of the psychobiology of depression. Blood samples for prolactin and cortisol were collected from 30 min before to 2.5 hours after L-5-HTP infusion. RESULTS: The MDD-AB children secreted significantly more prolactin post-L-5-HTP than the children in the other two groups. There were no differences in baseline prolactin or any of the cortisol measures. Total prolactin post-L-5-HTP was significantly correlated with clinical ratings of aggressive behavior (rho = .48). In addition, children with a family history positive for suicide attempt (MDD-AB: n = 7; MDD-NA: n = 5; NC-NA: n = 2) secreted significantly more prolactin post-L-5-HTP than children with no family history of suicide. CONCLUSIONS: Dysregulation in the serotonergic system in abused children appears to be related to both familial and experiential factors.

Language: en