title: A single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) study of regional cerebral blood flow in bipolar disorder.
abstract: Data on functional imaging of bipolar disorder (BD) utilizing single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) is limited. This study assessed regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF), using (99m)Tc-ECD SPECT, among patients with BD, with mania (N=10) or depression (N=10), compared with 10 patients with unipolar depression and 10 normal controls. Regions of interest were analysed using a semi-automatic brain quantification programme. Compared to controls, patients with mania had significantly reduced perfusion mainly in the left frontal area, also in the left anterior cingulate and parietal cortices; those with bipolar depression had significantly lowered rCBF principally in the anterior temporal regions bilaterally, as well as the left parietal area. Patients with unipolar depression had significantly lowered perfusion than controls in most of the regions examined, chiefly in the anterior temporal and frontal cortices bilaterally; they also had lowered perfusion in the right anterior temporal and frontal areas, as well as the right middle temporal area and the right thalamus, compared to patients with mania. Increased severity of psychotic symptoms was associated with reduced rCBF in patients. These results indicate that altered blood flow in the frontal-subcortical systems characterises patients with BD, as well as those with unipolar depression.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.
authors.forename: Rahul
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bhardwaj
authors.forename: Subho
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chakrabarti
authors.forename: Bhagwant Rai
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Mittal
authors.forename: Pratap
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sharan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001921:Brain / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000503:physiopathology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000098:blood supply / Q000503:physiopathology; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000098:blood supply / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000098:blood supply / Q000503:physiopathology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012039:Regional Blood Flow / Q000502:physiology; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000098:blood supply / Q000503:physiopathology; D013788:Thalamus / Q000098:blood supply / Q000503:physiopathology; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon