Common Treatment for Meth O.D. May Cause Brain Damage
A new
study from researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine reveals
that a common anti-psychotic drug used in emergency rooms to treat Meth
overdoses in patients damages brain cells in an area known to regulate
movement.
The
experiments indicate that the damage is only caused when a person with
Meth in his system is treated with the medication haloperidol. Neither
Meth nor haloperidol alone leads to the destructive effects. Research
shows the damage may predispose some people who have been treated for a
Meth overdose to seizures and the development of movement disorders,
although the study did not measure movement specifically. The scientists
hope to conduct further research to find out if the loss of cells results
in abnormal involuntary movements resembling Tourette's syndrome and
Huntington's disease.
From:
Haloperidol Treatment after High-Dose Methamphetamine Administration Is
Excitotoxic to GABA Cells in the Substantia Nigra Pars Reticulata
Authors:
Theo
Hatzipetros, Jamie G. Raudensky, Jean-Jacques Soghomonian, and Bryan K.
Yamamoto J.
Published in
The Journal of Neuroscience, May 30, 2007, 27(22):5895-5902;
doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5260-06.2007
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