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Hyperintense lesions on magnetic resonance images in bipolar disorder
W M McDonald1, L A Tupler, F A Marsteller
1Emory University Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Background:
To examine the magnetic resonance (MR) images of bipolar patients across a wide age range for the presence of hyperintense lesions compared to age- and gender-matched control subjects.
Methods:
Consecutive admissions to a mood disorders unit over a 2-year period were evaluated retrospectively for the presence of bipolar disorder by DSM-III-R criteria and whether they received an MR scan. Bipolar patients (n = 70, mean age = 49.9 +/- 19.7 years) were age- and gender-matched to control subjects (n = 70, mean age = 53.2 +/- 18.1 years) and the MR scans were rated to assess for the presence of hyperintensites.
Results:
Compared to control subjects, the bipolar patients demonstrated hyperintense lesions in the subependymal region, subcortical gray nuclei, and the deep white matter.
Conclusions:
Hyperintense lesions in bipolar patients are found in both the subcortical white matter and gray nuclei and may play an important role in the etiology of bipolar illness.