Hostname: page-component-669899f699-8p65j Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-04-28T12:49:50.271Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The dexamethasone suppression test in schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 1998

K. ISMAIL ,
R. M. MURRAY ,
M. J. WHEELER  and
V. O'KEANE
K. ISMAIL
Affiliation:
From the Maudsley Hospital, Department of Psychological Medicine, King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry, Institute of Psychiatry and St. Thomas's Hospital, London: and Department of Psychiatry, Addenbrooke's NHS Trust, Cambridge
R. M. MURRAY
Affiliation:
From the Maudsley Hospital, Department of Psychological Medicine, King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry, Institute of Psychiatry and St. Thomas's Hospital, London: and Department of Psychiatry, Addenbrooke's NHS Trust, Cambridge
M. J. WHEELER
Affiliation:
From the Maudsley Hospital, Department of Psychological Medicine, King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry, Institute of Psychiatry and St. Thomas's Hospital, London: and Department of Psychiatry, Addenbrooke's NHS Trust, Cambridge
V. O'KEANE
Affiliation:
From the Maudsley Hospital, Department of Psychological Medicine, King's College School of Medicine and Dentistry, Institute of Psychiatry and St. Thomas's Hospital, London: and Department of Psychiatry, Addenbrooke's NHS Trust, Cambridge
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background. Cortisol non-suppression following the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) has been found to a variable extent in schizophrenia. The aetiology is unclear but may be related to depression or negative symptoms.

Methods. The DST was administered to 64 patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia. All patients were screened for DSM-IV major depression and rated on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), Scale for Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS).

Results. DSM-IV criteria for major depression was fulfilled by 36% of the patients and 42% of patients had a history of parasuicide. Four patients had undetectable levels of dexamethasone and were excluded from the endocrine analyses. Only one remaining patient had a cortisol level above the cut-off point (>138 nmol/l), indicating escape from dexamethasone suppression. The post-dexamethasone cortisol level correlated significantly with HRSD and BPRS scores but not with the SANS. The SANS and HRSD scores were not correlated, but they were independently correlated with the BPRS score.

Conclusions. In contrast to some other work, rates of dexamethasone non-suppression were very low; together with the high rates of depression, this suggests that depression in schizophrenia may have a different neuroendocrine profile from major depressive disorders. Failure to measure dexamethasone levels can be misleading.

Type
Research Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 28 , Issue 2 , March 1998 , pp. 311 - 317
Copyright
© 1998 Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable