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Dopaminergic drugs exert their action through activation of dopamine D1 and D2 receptors [1]. Changes of dopamine receptor density or affinity following antiparkinsonian drug therapy is suggested to underlie the development of long-term treatment complications in patients with PD [2]. However, evidence for this has not been provided.

In the years since World War II, the emergency department has grown from a single room where accident cases were taken for first aid into one of the busiest, most complex, labor intensive and sophisticated hospital departments. The reason for this growth has been the unplanned, phenomenal increase in the use of the emergency department, in both Canada and the U.S., documented as being greater than that of any of the other measures of hospital utilization, and well beyond that which could be explained by the population growth (Voineskos, 1981; Krass, 1977; Chaiton, 1975; American Medical Association, 1966; Jenkins and Van de Leuv, 1978; Baltzan, 1972). The increasing utilization of the hospital emergency room has been accompanied by a similar and often greater increase in the percentage of psychiatric emergency visits (Schwartz et al., 1972; Satloff and Worby, 1970; Zonana et al., 1973; Lowy, 1971).