Abstract
Background
While a great deal of progress has been made in delineating gray matter abnormalities in schizophrenia using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), fewer studies have investigated white matter (WM) abnormalities and WM fiber tracts interconnecting brain regions. Particularly, it is unclear to what extend WM alterations are present before and after the initiation of antipsychotic medication with amisulpride in anti-psychotic naïve schizophrenia patients.
Methods
Thirty-eight first-episode, antipsychotic-naive schizophrenia patients and 38 matched healthy controls were scanned on Philips 3T Achieva MR scanner. Whole brain DTI images were acquired using single shot spin-echo echo-planar imaging. Images were corrected for head movement, eddy current distortion and susceptibility artifacts. After the baseline data acquisition, the patients were treated for 6 weeks with amisulpride. 28 patients and 28 healthy controls were included in the follow-up analyses. We performed whole brain tractography using the FA skeleton as a seed and CSF mask as termination criteria. The reward circuit was tracked from left VTA to left nucleus accumbens, left anterior limb of internal capsule (ALIC) and left hypothalamus separately. All tracking was performed using PROBTRACKX.
Results
Baseline: Voxel-wise statistics performed on the probabilistic WM fiber maps for whole brain identified deficiencies in patients, showing reduced macro-structural connectivity in: thalamus, putamen, pallidum, hippocampus, forceps major, uncinate fasciculus, anterior thalamic radiation (p-values<0.05). Within the reward circuit the average probability weighted FA along the tract showed lower FA within patients connections between left VTA and left ALIC (p=0.04), left VTA and nucles accumbens (p=0.04).
Followup: Voxe-lwise statistics performed on the probabilistic WM fiber maps for whole brain showed significant interaction, indicating improvement in the connectivity within the patients in Forceps major, right Cingulum (hippocampus), right Anterior thalamic radiation.
Conclusions
These preliminary results indicate that widespread structural WM deficiencies are present in never-medicated schizophrenia patients.
After 6 weeks of anti-psychotic monotherapy using amisulpride, there seems to be an improved connectivity within certain WM regions.
While a great deal of progress has been made in delineating gray matter abnormalities in schizophrenia using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), fewer studies have investigated white matter (WM) abnormalities and WM fiber tracts interconnecting brain regions. Particularly, it is unclear to what extend WM alterations are present before and after the initiation of antipsychotic medication with amisulpride in anti-psychotic naïve schizophrenia patients.
Methods
Thirty-eight first-episode, antipsychotic-naive schizophrenia patients and 38 matched healthy controls were scanned on Philips 3T Achieva MR scanner. Whole brain DTI images were acquired using single shot spin-echo echo-planar imaging. Images were corrected for head movement, eddy current distortion and susceptibility artifacts. After the baseline data acquisition, the patients were treated for 6 weeks with amisulpride. 28 patients and 28 healthy controls were included in the follow-up analyses. We performed whole brain tractography using the FA skeleton as a seed and CSF mask as termination criteria. The reward circuit was tracked from left VTA to left nucleus accumbens, left anterior limb of internal capsule (ALIC) and left hypothalamus separately. All tracking was performed using PROBTRACKX.
Results
Baseline: Voxel-wise statistics performed on the probabilistic WM fiber maps for whole brain identified deficiencies in patients, showing reduced macro-structural connectivity in: thalamus, putamen, pallidum, hippocampus, forceps major, uncinate fasciculus, anterior thalamic radiation (p-values<0.05). Within the reward circuit the average probability weighted FA along the tract showed lower FA within patients connections between left VTA and left ALIC (p=0.04), left VTA and nucles accumbens (p=0.04).
Followup: Voxe-lwise statistics performed on the probabilistic WM fiber maps for whole brain showed significant interaction, indicating improvement in the connectivity within the patients in Forceps major, right Cingulum (hippocampus), right Anterior thalamic radiation.
Conclusions
These preliminary results indicate that widespread structural WM deficiencies are present in never-medicated schizophrenia patients.
After 6 weeks of anti-psychotic monotherapy using amisulpride, there seems to be an improved connectivity within certain WM regions.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Publication date | 8 Oct 2014 |
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - 8 Oct 2014 |
| Event | Forskningsdag 2014, Glostrup Hospital - Glostrup, Denmark Duration: 8 Oct 2014 → 8 Oct 2014 |
Conference
| Conference | Forskningsdag 2014, Glostrup Hospital |
|---|---|
| Country/Territory | Denmark |
| City | Glostrup |
| Period | 08/10/2014 → 08/10/2014 |