A diffusion tensor imaging study of suicide attempters.
BACKGROUND
Few studies have examined white matter abnormalities in suicide attempters using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). This study sought to identify white matter regions altered in individuals with a prior suicide attempt.


METHODS
DTI scans were acquired in 13 suicide attempters with major depressive disorder (MDD), 39 non-attempters with MDD, and 46 healthy participants (HP). Fractional anisotropy (FA) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) were determined in the brain using two methods: region of interest (ROI) and tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS). ROIs were limited a priori to white matter adjacent to the caudal anterior cingulate cortex, rostral anterior cingulate cortex, dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, and medial orbitofrontal cortex.


RESULTS
Using the ROI approach, suicide attempters had lower FA than MDD non-attempters and HP in the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex. Uncorrected TBSS results confirmed a significant cluster within the right dorsomedial prefrontal cortex indicating lower FA in suicide attempters compared to non-attempters. There were no differences in ADC when comparing suicide attempters, non-attempters and HP groups using ROI or TBSS methods.


CONCLUSIONS
Low FA in the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex was associated with a suicide attempt history. Converging findings from other imaging modalities support this finding, making this region of potential interest in determining the diathesis for suicidal behavior.
Department of Psychiatry, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division (MIND), Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.|Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Science, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794 USA.
Doreen M
DM
Olvet
Department of Computer Science, University of Verona, Verona, Italy, 35131.
Denis
D
Peruzzo
Department of Psychiatry, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division (MIND), Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
Binod
B
Thapa-Chhetry
Department of Psychiatry, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division (MIND), Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
M Elizabeth
ME
Sublette
Department of Psychiatry, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division (MIND), Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
Gregory M
GM
Sullivan
Department of Psychiatry, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division (MIND), Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
Maria A
MA
Oquendo
Department of Psychiatry, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division (MIND), Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.|Department of Radiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
J John
JJ
Mann
Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Science, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794 USA.|Department of Radiology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794, USA.
Ramin V
RV
Parsey
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D016880:Anisotropy; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D003337:Corpus Callosum / Q000473:pathology; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000473:pathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009413:Nerve Fibers, Myelinated / Q000473:pathology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D013406:Suicide, Attempted; D055815:Young Adult
Diffusion tensor imaging; Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex; Major depressive disorder; Suicide attempt; Tract-based spatial statistics; White matter