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A brain MRI study in subjects with borderline personality disorder
1Department of Psychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, South Korea.
Journal of Affective Disorders
|December 19, 1998
Summary
This MRI study found that individuals with borderline personality disorder (BPD) have smaller frontal lobe volumes compared to healthy individuals. This brain difference may help in subtyping BPD.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Psychiatry
- Brain Anatomy
Background:
- Limited prior brain imaging studies in borderline personality disorder (BPD).
- Previous computed tomography (CT) studies yielded mostly negative findings.
- This is the first magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study to investigate structural brain abnormalities in BPD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate structural brain abnormalities in individuals with a sole diagnosis of BPD.
- To compare brain volumes between BPD subjects and healthy controls.
Main Methods:
- Twenty-five subjects diagnosed with BPD were compared to 25 age- and gender-matched healthy controls.
- Brain MRI was used to assess volumes of the frontal lobes, temporal lobes, lateral ventricles, and cerebral hemispheres.
Main Results:
- Subjects with BPD exhibited significantly smaller frontal lobe volumes compared to the control group (P=0.031).
- No significant differences were observed in the volumes of temporal lobes, lateral ventricles, or cerebral hemispheres between the groups.
Conclusions:
- The study identified a smaller frontal lobe volume in individuals with BPD via MRI.
- This finding suggests a potential biological marker for subtyping BPD.
- Limitations include strict criteria potentially affecting generalizability and unmeasured gray/white matter distinctions.