The importance of vanillylmandelic acid determination in opiate users

• Main Authors: Janićević-Ivanovska Danijela, Spasovska-Trajkovska Aneta, Stefanovski Branko, Subeska-Stratrova Slavica, Mečevska-Jovčevska Jasmina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Society of Medical Biochemists of Serbia, Belgrade 2009-01-01
• Series: Journal of Medical Biochemistry
• Subjects: vanillylmandelic acid; opioid addiction; withdrawal syndrome
• Online Access: https://scindeks-clanci.ceon.rs/data/pdf/1452-8258/2009/1452-82580903197J.pdf

Although knowledge about the etiology of heroin dependence is rather poor, it is known that the influence of opiates on the opioid, adrenergic and indirectly of GABA on the dopaminergic receptors leads to changes of catecholamine levels in brain structures, which are supposed to be essential in explaining the etiology of the opioid dependence. It is well-known that by analyzing catecholamine, we get vanillylmandelic acid (VMA), which is found in the urine as a final product. Thus, by an indirect determination of VMA it is also possible to define the catecholamine concentration in the brain, which is the aim of this study. This prospective study included 51 dependent heroin users divided into 3 groups, depending on the length of the medical treatment with a conventional detox method (without treatment, second day of the treatment, and after the 10th day of treatment) as well as a control group consisting of 20 healthy subjects. We used the Pissano method chromatographic-spectrophotometric determination - for estimating the level of vanillylmandelic acid, and a scale for de fining the severity of symptoms of the withdrawal syndrome (WS). The results showed that the highest average values of the urinary level of VMA were found in the subjects in withdrawal crisis with a high WS scale score in comparison with the other examined groups (statistically significant) as a result of the high adrenergic level. The average score on the scale of depression was high in the subjects in withdrawal crisis where we also found low values of the VMA urinary level. Being aware of the neurobiology of heroin dependence is of great importance for finding new pharmacological treatments for heroin addiction.