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Brain computerized tomography in subtypes of severe chronic schizophrenia
S M Stahl1, T Jernigan, A Pfefferbaum
1Schizophrenia Biological Research Center, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Palo Alto, California.
Psychological Medicine
|February 1, 1988
Summary
Severely ill, chronic schizophrenic patients showed enlarged third ventricles and brain atrophy in CT scans. These findings in long-term patients differ from earlier studies on less ill individuals.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Psychiatry
- Radiology
Background:
- Schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder with complex neurobiological underpinnings.
- Previous research suggests structural brain abnormalities in schizophrenic patients, but findings vary with illness severity and patient demographics.
- Long-term hospitalization and severe illness may influence brain morphology in chronic schizophrenia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate structural brain differences in severely ill, chronic schizophrenic patients requiring long-term hospitalization.
- To compare computerized tomographic (CT) brain scan findings in this patient group with a matched healthy control population.
- To identify potential correlations between illness severity and specific brain structural changes.
Main Methods:
- Computerized tomographic (CT) brain scans were acquired from severely ill, chronic schizophrenic patients in a long-term Veterans Administration hospital setting.
- A control group of age, sex, and education-matched healthy individuals was recruited for comparison.
- Quantitative analysis focused on ventricular size, particularly the third ventricle, and assessment of fronto-temporo-sylvian atrophy.
Main Results:
- Severely ill, chronic schizophrenic patients exhibited significantly larger third ventricular volumes compared to normal controls.
- Increased rankings of fronto-temporo-sylvian atrophy were observed in the patient group relative to controls.
- These results contrast with findings from previous studies involving younger, less severely ill schizophrenic populations.
Conclusions:
- Long-term, severe chronic schizophrenia is associated with distinct patterns of brain structural abnormalities, including ventricular enlargement and cortical atrophy.
- These findings highlight the potential impact of illness chronicity and severity on brain morphology in schizophrenia.
- Further research is warranted to elucidate the mechanisms underlying these observed structural changes and their clinical implications.