Abstract
Tardive dyskinesia occurs frequently in schizophrenic patients chronically treated with classical antipsychotic medication. It may be caused by loss of dopaminergic cells, due to free radicals as a product of high synaptic dopamine levels. To evaluate dopamine transporter density in the striatum in patients with tardive dyskinesia. Striatal [123I]FP-CIT binding was measured with SPECT in seven schizophrenic patients with tardive dyskinesia and eight healthy controls. No significant difference was found between striatal [123I]FP-CIT binding ratios in patients with tardive dyskinesia and controls. This preliminary study indicates no change in striatal dopamine transporter density in schizophrenic patients with tardive dyskinesia. This finding does not support the hypothesis that tardive dyskinesia is caused by dopaminergic cell loss.
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