Relationship of prolactin response to d-fenfluramine to behavioral and questionnaire assessments of aggression in personality-disordered men

Prolactin (PRL) responses to acute challenge with the serotonin (5-HT) releaser/uptake inhibitor, d-fenfluramine (PRL[d-FEN]), were correlated with three different measures of aggression in 14 male personality-disordered subjects. Consistent with previous work, PRL[d-FEN] responses were inversely correlated with scores on the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory—Assault scale (BDHI-Assault) and with the Brown—Goodwin Aggression—Revised (BGA-R) Aggression scale. In addition, PRL[d-FEN] responses were inversely correlated with a direct laboratory measure of aggressive behavior (Point-Subtraction Aggression Paradigm: PSAP). Although all measures of aggression correlated with PRL[d-FEN] response, differences among the intercorrelations of these measures were found. Specifically, BGA-R Aggression scores correlated with both BDHI-Assault and PSAP scores, but no relation was found between BDHI-Assault and PSAP scores. The results suggest that central 5-HT function may be associated with both self-report and behavioral measures of aggressive behavior, which may represent somewhat separate aspects of aggressive behavior.