[Cerebral metabolism of dopamine and of serotonin during Alzheimer and Pick's diseases. Dynamic study by the test using probenecid].

A study of the cerebral metabolism of dopamine and serotonin has been realized by the probenecid test in 17 patients. The diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (13 patients) and Pick's disease (4 patients) has been made on clinical and radiological grounds. No important anomaly of this metabolism was discovered. In subjects with Alzheimer's disease, the renewal rates of H.V.A. and 5 H.I.A.A. were diminished in comparison to the values measured in normal individuals, but this difference was not significant. In patients with Pick's disease, the accumulation of H.V.A. after probenecid was in the normal bounds, whereas that of 5 H.I.A.A. was non-significantly decreased. The results are compared with those of the literature.