Different patterns of CSF neurotransmitter metabolism in patients with left or right hemispheric stroke

In 30 ischemic stroke patients, divided into 2 groups depending on the side of their hemispheric cerebral lesion, the authors evaluated the levels of CSF homovanillic acid (HVA) and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA). The changes of these metabolites in CSF samples collected 3, 14 and 25 days after stroke have been correlated to the clinical course. In both groups, which were similar in respect to the localization of the infarcted area and to the volume of the lesion, the levels of HVA and 5-HIAA increased in the first 2-3 days and gradually declined to normal values in the following 3 weeks, in parallel with the regression of neurological deficits. The increase of HVA and 5-HIAA was statistically significant only in left hemisphere-injured patients. A linear regression analysis between the clinical score values and the CSF levels of the two metabolites at different time-points of observation revealed a significant correlation only for the HVA in the left-lesioned patients.