Plasma Neurochemistry in Juvenile Offenders

Plasma dopamine-β-hydroxylase activity, platelet monoamine oxidase activity, and whole blood serotonin (5-HT) were measured in 27 male adolescents at a juvenile detention center and in 17 male adolescents at a community mental health clinic. The subjects at the mental health clinic were diagnosed as suffering from an anxiety or depressive disorder but did not meet criteria for attention deficit or conduct disorder. All subjects at the detention center met criteria for conduct disorder. They were further subtyped in two ways: (1) presence or absence of an anxiety or depressive disorder and (2) “violent” or “non-violent” according to arrest record. Plasma dopamine-β-hydroxylase and platelet monoamine oxidase activities were not different across any of the groups. 5-HT was significantly lower in the group of adolescents with depressive or anxiety disorders alone relative to the detention subjects; 5-HT was correlated positively with clinician ratings of conduct symptoms and negatively with such ratings of anxiety symptoms. There was trend for the violent offenders to have higher whole blood 5-HT.