title: Left superior temporal gyrus activation during sentence perception negatively correlates with auditory hallucination severity in schizophrenia patients.
abstract: The left superior temporal cortex, which supports linguistic functions, has consistently been reported to activate during auditory-verbal hallucinations in schizophrenia patients. It has been suggested that auditory hallucinations and the processing of normal external speech compete for common neurophysiological resources. We tested the hypothesis of a negative relationship between the clinical severity of hallucinations and local brain activity in posterior linguistic regions while patients were listening to external speech. Fifteen right-handed patients with schizophrenia and daily auditory hallucinations for at least 3 months were studied with event-related fMRI while listening to sentences in French or to silence. Severity of hallucinations, assessed using the auditory hallucination subscales of the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales (PSYRATS) and of the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS-AH), negatively correlated with activation in the left temporal superior region in the French minus silence condition. This finding supports the hypothesis that auditory hallucinations compete with normal external speech for processing sites within the temporal cortex in schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Inserm U.797, CEA-INSERM Research Unit "Neuroimaging and Psychiatry", Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) Hospital Department Frédéric Joliot, IFR49, Paris-Sud 11 and Paris-5 Universities; 4 place Gl. Leclerc 91401, Orsay, France.
authors.forename: Marion
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Plaze
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bartrés-Faz
authors.forename: Jean-Luc
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Martinot
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Januel
authors.forename: Franck
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bellivier
authors.forename: Renaud
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: De Beaurepaire
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chanraud
authors.forename: Jamila
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Andoh
authors.forename: Jean-Pascal
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Lefaucheur
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Artiges
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pallier
authors.forename: Marie-Laure
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Paillère-Martinot
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013067:Speech Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology*