SINGLE-PHOTON EMISSION COMPUTED-TOMOGRAPHY WITH TC-99M-EXAMETAZIME INUNMEDICATED SCHIZOPHRENIC-PATIENTS

We examined 20 actively psychotic unmedicated schizophrenic patients a nd 20 matched control subjects by using single-photon emission, comput ed tomography (SPECT) with technetium-99m-exametazime. Patients showed a hyperfrontal pattern of tracer uptake with significant relative inc reases in superior prefrontal cortex. This abnormality was less pronou nced in patients with higher symptom scores for psychomotor poverty. I n addition, patients showed associations between certain schizophrenic syndrome scores, such as psychomotor poverty, disorganization, and re ality distortion, and tracer uptake to a number of cortical and subcor tical brain regions. This syndrome-related pattern of tracer uptake wa s, at least in part, consistent with similar associations previously r eported in chronically medicated schizophrenic patients. SPECT therefo re provides a readily available method to examine the relationship bet ween symptom pattern and regional brain metabolism in psychotic patien ts. Any observed patterns of association will depend on the current me ntal and medication status of the patients examined.