White matter microstructure alterations in bipolar disorder.
Genetic, neuropathological and magnetic resonance imaging findings support the presence of diffuse white matter cytoarchitectural disruption in bipolar disorder. In this study, diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) was applied to study cortical white matter microstructure organisation in 24 patients with DSM-IV bipolar disorder and 35 matched normal controls. DWI images were obtained using a 1.5 Tesla scanner and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values were determined over regions of interest placed, bilaterally, in the frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital white matter. Significantly increased ADC values were found in bipolar patients with respect to normal controls in the right temporal lobe, left parietal lobe and bilateral occipital lobes. ADC values did not associate significantly with age or with clinical variables (p>0.05). Diffuse cortical white matter alterations on DWI in bipolar disorder denote widespread disruption of white matter integrity and may be due to altered myelination and/or axonal integrity.
Department of Public Health and Commuity Medicine, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
Marcella
M
Bellani
Cinzia
C
Perlini
Adele
A
Ferro
Stefania
S
Cerruti
Gianluca
G
Rambaldelli
Miriam
M
Isola
Roberto
R
Cerini
Nicola
N
Dusi
Nicola
N
Andreone
Matteo
M
Balestrieri
Roberto
R
Pozzi Mucelli
Michele
M
Tansella
Paolo
P
Brambilla
D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000473:pathology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000473:pathology*; D038524:Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D056784:Leukoencephalopathies / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009413:Nerve Fibers, Myelinated / Q000473:pathology*