Showing papers by "Leif Bertilsson published in 1976"
TL;DR: There was a significant correlation between the concnetration of 5-HIAA and severity of depression in the lower, but not in the upper, mode, which suggests the existence of a biochemical subgroup of depressive disorder, characterized by a disturbance of serotonin turnover.
Abstract: The distribution of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA) concentrations in the cerebrospinal fluid of 68 depressed patients was bimodal. Twenty-nine percent of the patients were in the lower mode, with a concentration of 5-HIAA below 15 nanograms per milliliter. Although there were no differences in overall severity of depression between the two modes, there was a significant correlation between the concnetration of 5-HIAA and severity of depression in the lower, but not in the upper, mode. The finding suggests the existence of a biochemical subgroup of depressive disorder, characterized by a disturbance of serotonin turnover.
644 citations
TL;DR: A method for the simultaneous quantitation of glutamic acid and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in tissue by mass fragmentography has been developed and has been demonstrated by measurements in parts of rat cerebellum and in the superior cervical ganglion.
83 citations
TL;DR: Thirteen ambulant patients suffering from partial epilepsy with complex symptomatology, who were already being treated with phenytoin in optimal doses (plasma level 14–20 µg/ml) were also given carbamazepine, and at plasma levels of the latter there was no further reduction in the frequency of partial or generalized epileptic seizures.
Abstract: Carbamazepine and its epoxide in plasma were measured by liquid chromatography in 25 patients treated with a mean dose of carbamazepine of 12.5±3.3 mg/kg body weight. The mean concentrations of parent drug and metabolite were 5.4±2.5 µg/ml and 1.10±0.42 µg/ml, respectively. A significant correlation was found between the plasma concentrations of the two compounds (r=0.64; p<0.001), but marked interindividual variation existed in the ratio of carbamazepine to epoxide. Based on simultaneous measurements in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid, the unbound fraction of carbamazepine in plasma was of the order of 20% as compared to 45% for the epoxide. Thirteen ambulant patients suffering from partial epilepsy with complex symptomatology, who were already being treated with phenytoin in optimal doses (plasma level 14–20 µg/ml) were also given carbamazepine. At plasma levels of the latter of about 5 µg/ml there was no further reduction in the frequency of partial or generalized epileptic seizures. In five patients the dose was increased to produce plasma concentrations of 7 – 8 µg/ml. There was still no improvement and side-effects were seen in three patients.
56 citations