Amphetamine Withdrawal: Affective State, Sleep Patterns, and MHPG Excretion

Abstract

The authors found that the clinical depressions which occurred following withdrawal from amphetamines after prolonged abuse were temporally associated with a decrease in the excretion of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG), a metabolite of norepinephrine, and altered EEG sleep patterns including an increased amount of D sleep (REM sleep). As the depressions subsided, MHPG excretion increased and measures of D sleep decreased.