A study of serum prolactin levels in schizophrenia: comparison of males and females

Abstract

1. Serum prolactin levels were measured in large cohorts of schizophrenic patients (67 males and 42 females) and normal subjects (78 males and 42 females). 2. There was no significant differences between the serum prolactin levels of patients and controls, except in the age group 15-29 years. There were no significant differences between the serum prolactin levels of males and females, either among the patients or the control subjects. 3. The rise in serum prolactin levels after the commencement of neuroleptic medication in the patients was greater in females than in males even though the female patients received neuroleptics at lower doses. 4. These data indicate that serum prolactin levels in unmedicated males and females are similar; however, the prolactin response to neuroleptic medication is greater in females than in males.