Effects of meta-chlorophenylpiperazine on cerebral blood flow in obsessive-compulsive disorder and controls.
BACKGROUND
A number of studies have shown that the serotonin receptor agonist meta-chlorophenylpiperazine (mCPP) can exacerbate symptoms in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The aim of the present study was to study the effect of this compound on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in patients and controls.


METHODS
Seven OCD patients and 8 healthy controls were randomly allocated to a double-blind challenge study with mCPP (0.5 mg/kg orally). rCBF was measured by 99m-Tc-hexamethyl-propyleneamineoxime single photon emission computed tomography.


RESULTS
mCPP did not induce OCD symptoms in patients, but caused a significant decrease in rCBF in OCD patients, but not in controls. The decrease was seen in the reference regions cerebellum and whole brain, and in the frontal cortex, caudate nucleus, putamen, and thalamus.


CONCLUSIONS
The effect of mCPP on the reference regions in patients posed methodological problems in the normalization methods. A possible role of the cerebellum in OCD is discussed.
Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Utrecht, The Netherlands.
K L
KL
Ho Pian
H G
HG
Westenberg
J A
JA
den Boer
W I
WI
de Bruin
P P
PP
van Rijk
D000328:Adult; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009771:Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010879:Piperazines / Q000494:pharmacology*; D017366:Serotonin Receptor Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology*
D010879:Piperazines; D017366:Serotonin Receptor Agonists; C015068:1-(3-chlorophenyl)piperazine