Jl. Rapoport et al., CHILDHOOD-ONSET SCHIZOPHRENIA - PROGRESSIVE VENTRICULAR CHANGE DURINGADOLESCENCE, Archives of general psychiatry, 54(10), 1997, pp. 897-903
Background: There is controversy about progression in brain abnormalit
ies in later-onset schizophrenia. This study looked for more striking
progression in brain abnormalities during adolescence in a chronically
ill, treatment-refractory sample of patients with childhood-onset sch
izophrenia who had had more prepsychotic developmental disturbance, bu
t clinical and neurobiological characteristics similar to those of pat
ients with treatment-refractory adult-onset schizophrenia who have poo
r outcome. Methods: Anatomic brain magnetic resonance images were obta
ined for 16 children and adolescents with onset of schizophrenia by 12
years of age and 24 temporally yoked, age-and sex-matched healthy con
trols. Subjects were scanned on initial admission and rescanned after
2 years with the identical equipment and measurement methods. Results:
Childhood schizophrenics showed a significantly greater increase in v
entricular volume than did controls, for whom ventricles did not incre
ase significantly (analysis of variance, diagnosis x time, F = 16.1, P
< .001). A significant decrease in midsagittal thalamic area was also
seen for the schizophrenics (P = .03), which was unchanged at rescan
for controls. These differential brain changes correlated significantl
y with each other and tended to be predicted by both prepsychotic deve
lopmental abnormality (Premorbid Assessment Scale, P = .06) and Brief
Psychiatric Rating Scale at follow-up (P = .07). Conclusions: More con
sistent progressive ventricular enlargement was seen during adolescenc
e for this childhood-onset sample than has been reported for adult-ons
et populations. The brain imaging results support other clinical data
showing both early and late deviations in brain development for at lea
st this rare subgroup of treatment-refractory, very-early-onset schizo
phrenic patients.