CARBOHYDRATE METABOLISM IN BRAIN DISEASE

Abstract

THE carbohydrate metabolism in schizophrenia and in manic-depressive and involutional psychoses have long been controversial subjects.¹The experiments described here were designed to throw light on these questions about the carbohydrate metabolism in psychotic patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS The subjects studied were psychotic patients and normal adult subjects of comparable age. The psychotic patients were suffering from schizophrenic, manic-depressive, or involutional psychoses; had no other intercurrent disease; were well nourished and not debilitated; were not receiving shock therapy, and were cooperative during the study; the women had normal menstrual function. All subjects had a high carbohydrate intake, in addition to their adequate normal diets, for three to five days before each experiment. They were at rest throughout the study and in the fasting state at the time the initial blood specimen was taken. The methods used were that of Folin and Wu for blood glucose,²that of Somogyi