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Developmental abnormalities in striatum in young bipolar patients: a preliminary study
Marsal Sanches1, Roxsann L Roberts, Roberto B Sassi
1Division of Mood and Anxiety Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA.
Bipolar Disorders
|March 15, 2005
Summary
Young bipolar patients show normal striatal volumes but an inverse age-related relationship in caudate and putamen size, suggesting developmental striatal abnormalities in bipolar disorder.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Developmental Psychology
Background:
- Adult mood disorder patients exhibit basal ganglia abnormalities.
- Early-onset abnormalities in striatal structures are not well-understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate striatal volume differences in early-stage pediatric bipolar disorder.
- To compare the volumes of the caudate and putamen in young patients and controls.
Main Methods:
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used for 15 pediatric bipolar disorder patients and 21 healthy controls.
- Manual measurements of caudate and putamen volumes were performed by blinded evaluators.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in striatal volumes between bipolar patients and controls.
- A significant inverse relationship between age and left/right caudate and left putamen volumes was observed in bipolar patients.
- This age-striatal volume relationship was absent in healthy controls.
Conclusions:
- Striatal developmental abnormalities may play a role in bipolar disorder pathophysiology.
- Early detection of these developmental changes is crucial for understanding bipolar disorder.