Left superior temporal gyrus activation during sentence perception negatively correlates with auditory hallucination severity in schizophrenia patients.
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.
Plaze
Marion
M
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.
Bartrés-Faz
David
D
Martinot
Jean-Luc
JL
Januel
Dominique
D
Bellivier
Franck
F
De Beaurepaire
Renaud
R
Chanraud
Sandra
S
Andoh
Jamila
J
Lefaucheur
Jean-Pascal
JP
Artiges
Eric
E
Pallier
Christophe
C
Paillère-Martinot
Marie-Laure
ML
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*