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Lateral ventricular enlargement in schizotypal personality disorder
L J Siever1, M Rotter, M Losonczy
1Psychiatry Service (116A), Bronx VA Medical Center, NY 10468, USA.
Psychiatry Research
|July 28, 1995
Summary
Schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) patients show increased ventricle-brain ratios (VBRs) compared to other personality disorders, falling between schizophrenic patients and healthy controls. This finding suggests potential shared neurobiological characteristics.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Psychiatry
- Radiology
Background:
- Increased ventricle-brain ratio (VBR) is a known finding in chronic schizophrenia.
- Schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) shares phenomenological and biological similarities with schizophrenia.
- VBR has not been extensively studied in large, well-characterized SPD populations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate VBR in a cohort of male patients with SPD.
- To compare VBR in SPD patients with those having other personality disorders, schizophrenia, and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Computed tomography (CT) scans were analyzed for VBR.
- Participants included 36 male SPD patients, 23 males with other personality disorders, 133 male schizophrenic patients, and 42 male normal volunteers.
Main Results:
- SPD patients exhibited significantly greater lateral VBRs than patients with other personality disorders.
- VBR in SPD patients was intermediate between schizophrenic patients and normal volunteers.
- No significant correlations were found between VBR and psychotic-like or deficit symptoms in SPD.
Conclusions:
- SPD patients may present with elevated VBRs, similar to schizophrenic patients, when compared to individuals with other personality disorders.
- The VBR findings in SPD suggest potential shared neurobiological underpinnings with schizophrenia.