White matter alterations associated with suicide in patients with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder

The risk of suicide is disproportionately high among people diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder. Brain imaging studies have shown a few relationships between neuroanatomy and suicide. This study examines the relationship between alterations in brain white matter (WM) and suicidal behavior in people with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder. The study participants were 56 patients with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder, with (n=15) and without (n=41) a history of suicide attempts. Fractional anisotropy (FA) values were compared between suicide attempters and non-attempters using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS). Attempters showed significantly higher FA values than non-attempters in the left corona radiata, the superior longitudinal fasciculus, the posterior limb and retrolenticular part of the internal capsule, the external capsule, the insula, the posterior thalamic radiation, the cerebral peduncle, the sagittal stratum, and temporal lobe WM. Scores of the picture arrangement test showed a significant positive correlation with FA values of the right corona radiata, the right superior longitudinal fasciculus, the body of the corpus callosum, and the left corona radiata in attempters but not in non-attempters. These findings suggest that fronto-temporo-limbic circuits can be associated mainly with suicidal behavior in people with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder.