Serum dopamine-beta-hydroxylase activity in acute stroke.

Serum dopamine-beta-hydroxylase (DBH) activity was measured in 34 patients with acute cerebrovascular disease. The serum level of DBH activity showed its highest value soon after the onset of stroke and then gradually decreased over the next few days. After reaching its lowest level, the DBH activity again showed a slight increase. There was no direct relationship between serum DBH activity and total serum protein, or blood pressure. In 8 of 12 patients, DBH activity in the cerebral venous blood was higher than that in the arterial blood. These results suggest that rapid release of DBH into the circulating blood occurred after stroke, presumably from sympathetic nerve endings in the vessels or organs, including the brain.