Clinical correlates of sulcal widening in chronic schizophrenia

Fifty-five chronic schizophrenic males who consented to have a computed tomographic (CT) brain scan were divided into those with cerebral atrophy evidenced by sulcal widening (n = 22) and those with normal sulci (n = 33). The two groups were compared on several clinical variables obtained from medical records by psychiatrists who were unaware of the CT results. Schizophrenic men with sulcal enlargement were significantly less likely to show agitation as a clinical symptom during an acute relapse and had significantly worse cognitive test scores on admission to the hospital. The implications of these findings are compared to the literature on ventricular enlargement and their clinical applications are discussed.