title: In vivo stereological assessment of caudate volume in man: effect of normal aging.
abstract: Using intermediate weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and a systematic sampling stereological method in 39 normal volunteers aged 24-79 years old, we demonstrated a marked age-associated decline in caudate nuclei volume (r = -0.69, p less than 0.0001). The mean absolute volume of the caudate nuclei in this study (9.4 cm3) was almost identical to that reported in a previous autopsy study and further confirms the validity of this stereological technique for use with MR images. This technique will provide a method for measuring the caudate and other nuclei in vivo, from brain images and, as such, a research tool to correlate age-associated changes in cognitive, sensory and motor function with caudate nucleus volume and other brain regions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710.
authors.forename: K R
authors.initials: KR
authors.lastname: Krishnan
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Husain
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: McDonald
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Doraiswamy
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Figiel
authors.forename: O B
authors.initials: OB
authors.lastname: Boyko
authors.forename: E H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Ellinwood
authors.forename: C B
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Nemeroff
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D002421:Caudate Nucleus / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012727:Sex Characteristics