Rats receiving L-dopa/carbidopa (70 mg/kg/17.5 mg/kg, i.p.) 1 h prior to a single methamphetamine (m-AMPH) (4 mg/kg, s.c.) pretreatment showed an extraordinary striatal dopamine (DA) overflow into the extracellular space (30-60 times basal overflow) as compared to the DA overflow elicited by m-AMPH alone (4-5 times basal). Animals treated with L-dopa/carbidopa plus m-AMPH, but not m-AMPH alone, had substantial (60%) decreases in striatal DA content 1 week later. These findings support the conclusion that the magnitude of m-AMPH-induced DA overflow contributes to the degree of nerve terminal damage and highlight the importance of extracellular DA in striatal terminal damage.