AMPHETAMINE METABOLISM IN AMPHETAMINE-INDUCED PSYCHOSIS

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the amphetamine metabolism in amphetamine-induced psychosis. Eleven intravenous abusers of amphetamine were admitted to clinic in a state of paranoid psychosis, with delusions of persecution, visual and auditory hallucinations, and varying degrees of anxiety and motor unrest. It was found that administration of bicarbonate, which retarded the elimination of basic compounds, tended to prolong the course of the psychosis and to intensify the symptoms compared with the group which had acidic urine. There was an inverse relationship between the urinary output of amphetamine and both basic and deaminated metabolites. It is found that when the pH of urine was high both basic and acidic metabolites increased considerably. It is also found that when the ratings of psychotic symptoms were plotted against the plasma levels of amphetamine at 8 a.m. On the second day after admission no correlation was obtained. The relationship between the relative excretion of labeled basic hydroxylated metabolites and psychotic symptoms is also shown.