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Disordered water homeostasis in schizophrenia and cerebral ventricular size
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Stellenbosch, Tygerberg, South Africa.
Background:
A possible association between disordered water homeostasis and cerebral ventricular size in patients with schizophrenia was investigated.
Method:
In a cross-sectional study of hospitalised patients, cerebral ventricular size was measured in 16 schizophrenic patients with disordered water homeostasis and 16 matched schizophrenic controls by magnetic resonance imaging.
Results:
Ventricle to brain ratio, third ventricular index, bicaudate index and bifrontal index tended to be greater in those with schizophrenia with disordered water homeostasis, although differences were significant only for the bifrontal index (P < 0.05). Strong negative correlations were found between ventricular size and performance on neuropsychological testing in the disordered water homeostasis group.
Conclusion:
These results provide evidence for an association between structural brain abnormality and disordered water homeostasis in a subset of schizophrenic patients.