Visual white matter integrity in schizophrenia.
OBJECTIVE
Patients with schizophrenia have visual-processing deficits. This study examines visual white matter integrity as a potential mechanism for these deficits.


METHODS
Diffusion tensor imaging was used to examine white matter integrity at four levels of the visual system in 17 patients with schizophrenia and 21 comparison subjects. The levels examined were the optic radiations, the striate cortex, the inferior parietal lobule, and the fusiform gyrus.


RESULTS
Schizophrenia patients showed a significant decrease in fractional anisotropy in the optic radiations but not in any other region.


CONCLUSIONS
This finding indicates that white matter integrity is more impaired at initial input, rather than at higher levels of the visual system, and supports the hypothesis that visual-processing deficits occur at the early stages of processing.
Butler
Pamela D
PD
Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Rd., Orangeburg NY, 10962, USA. butler@nki.rfmh.org
Hoptman
Matthew J
MJ
Nierenberg
Jay
J
Foxe
John J
JJ
Javitt
Daniel C
DC
Lim
Kelvin O
KO
D000328:Adult; D016880:Anisotropy; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*