Low non-oxidative glucose metabolism and violent offending: an 8-year prospective follow-up study.
Violent offenders have abnormalities in their glucose metabolism as indicated by decreased glucose uptake in their prefrontal cortex and a low blood glucose nadir in the glucose tolerance test. We tested the hypothesis that low non-oxidative glucose metabolism (NOG) predicts forthcoming violent offending among antisocial males. Glucose metabolism was measured using the insulin clamp method among 49 impulsive, violent, antisocial offenders during a forensic psychiatric examination. Those offenders who committed at least one new violent crime during the 8-year follow-up had a mean NOG of 1.4 standard deviations lower than non-recidivistic offenders. In logistic regression analysis, NOG alone explained 27% of the variation in the recidivistic offending. Low non-oxidative metabolism may be a crucial component in the pathophysiology of habitually violent behavior among subjects with antisocial personality disorder. This might suggest that substances increasing glycogen formation and decreasing the risk of hypoglycemia might be potential treatments for impulsive violent behavior.
Virkkunen
Matti
M
Department of Psychiatry, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Helsinki, Finland. matti.virkkunen@hus.fi
Rissanen
Aila
A
Franssila-Kallunki
Anja
A
Tiihonen
Jari
J
D000328:Adult; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism*; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D002151:Calorimetry; D015897:Comorbidity; D003415:Crime / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007174:Disruptive, Impulse Control, and Conduct Disorders / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005555:Forensic Psychiatry; D005947:Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D015309:Glucose Clamp Technique; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000378:metabolism; D011329:Prisoners / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011336:Probability; D012372:ROC Curve; D014754:Violence / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
D001786:Blood Glucose; D007328:Insulin; D005947:Glucose