Striatal dopaminergic D(2) receptor density measured by
[(123)I]iodobenzamide SPECT in the prediction of treatment
outcome of
alcohol
-dependent patients.
OBJECTIVE:
The authors' goal was to study striatal dopaminergic dopamine 2
(D(2)) receptors as a biological marker of early relapse in
detoxified alcoholic patients by using [(123)I]iodobenzamide
([123I]IBZM) single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).
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METHOD:
The authors performed [(123)I]IBZM SPECT on 21 alcohol-dependent
inpatients during detoxification and on nine healthy volunteers,
using the ratios of basal ganglia to occipital lobes for SPECT
quantification. Depending on treatment outcome 3 months after
hospital discharge, patients were determined to be relapsers or
nonrelapsers.
RESULTS:
Alcohol-dependent subjects with early relapse (within 3 months after
hospital discharge) showed a higher uptake of [(123)I]IBZM in the
basal ganglia during detoxification (mean ratio=1.83, SD=0.9) than
patients who did not have early relapse (mean ratio=1.69, SD=0.11).
CONCLUSIONS:
These results suggest that low levels of dopamine, or an increased
density of free striatal dopaminergic D(2) receptors, could be
related to early relapse in alcohol-dependent patients. Therefore,
[(123)I]IBZM SPECT could become a biological marker of vulnerability
to relapse for alcoholic patients in recovery.
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