Extrapyramidal symptoms in schizophrenia: evidence of blunted cerebral hemodynamics during a planning task.
Acute extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS) occur frequently in schizophrenia, mostly caused by antidopaminergic substances. There have been no published reports on the impact of acute EPS on cerebral blood flow (CBF) or related measures. In the following study, we examined schizophrenic patients with and without EPS during a planning task and measurements of CBF velocity. Sixteen patients with chronic schizophrenia and 16 healthy participants performed a planning paradigm during bilateral functional transcranial Doppler sonography of the middle cerebral arteries. Patients with acute EPS showed blunted CBF velocity exclusively during difficult planning tasks, and correlation analyses confirmed that higher EPS scores were associated with reduced adaption of CBF velocity. EPS in schizophrenia are associated with a detrimental effect on CBF velocity. Hypothetically, compromised adaptation of cerebral hemodynamics during difficult, but not during easy planning tasks is one correlate of dysfunctional frontostriatal circuits in schizophrenic patients with EPS.
aDepartment of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland bDepartment of General Psychiatry, Center of Psychosocial Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany cKlinikum am Weissenhof, Department of General Psychiatry and Psychotherapy West, Weinsberg, Germany dInstitute of Psychology, UMIT University for Health Sciences, Medical Informatics and Technology, Hall in Tirol, Austria.
Daniel
D
Schuepbach
Matthias
M
Michel
Gert
G
Wagner
Stefan
S
Duschek
Sabine C
SC
Herpertz
D000328:Adult; D001480:Basal Ganglia Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D017585:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial / Q000379:methods