Hippocampal volume asymmetry and age at illness onset in males with schizophrenia.
To determine whether there are disturbances of hippocampal volume asymmetry in schizophrenic patients, we obtained contiguous, 1-mm-thick magnetic resonance images in 28 males with chronic schizophrenia and in 28 age-matched healthy males. The schizophrenic patients showed a bilateral reduction in volume of the hippocampal formation (HF; left 7.0%; right 8.7%). This reduction was significantly associated with the severity of disorganization syndrome (P < 0.0005). A significant asymmetry in the HF volume was found in the control subjects (P = 0.006), but not in the patients (P = 0.40). There was a significant positive correlation between the asymmetry index and the patient's age at the onset of schizophrenia (r = 0.46, P = 0.01). Results indicate that a disturbance in the normal asymmetry of the HF may be a characteristic in schizophrenia, particularly in patients with an early onset of the illness.
Fukuzako
H
H
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Kagoshima University, Japan.
Yamada
K
K
Kodama
S
S
Yonezawa
T
T
Fukuzako
T
T
Takenouchi
K
K
Kajiya
Y
Y
Nakajo
M
M
Takigawa
M
M
D000328:Adult; D017668:Age of Onset; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000473:pathology*