STRUCTURAL BRAIN IMAGING IN SCHIZOPHRENIA

In vivo neuroimaging techniques have characterized the global features of brain dysmorphology in schizophrenia. These features include ventr iculomegaly and widespread sulcal dilation, which particularly affect the frontal and temporal lobes and involve cortical gray matter rather than white matter. Dysmorphology of specific brain structures such as the basal ganglia and hippocampus, which have been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia by pharmacological manipulations and post mortem investigations, have not been consistently observed in viv o, perhaps because of differences in imaging and analysis techniques, methods used to control for variance due to ago and head size, and sam ple characteristics. The epidemiology of the observed widespread brain dysmorphology supports a developmental origin, perhaps with limited p rogressive change beyond that expected in normal aging. Establishing t he clinical significance of relatively static structural brain dysmorp hologies remains a major challenge that may be best met by use of comb ined cross-sectional and longitudinal study designs. (C) 1995 Wiley-Li ss, Inc.