HUMAN BASAL GANGLIA VOLUME ASYMMETRIES ON MAGNETIC-RESONANCE IMAGES

The brains of 19 healthy adults, ages 18-49, were imaged on a GE Signa 1.5 T MR scanner. Basal ganglia were circumscribed on sequential axia l proton density-weighted images (TR 1700, TE 20) and submitted for 3- dimensional reconstruction and volumetric analysis at a computer graph ics workstation. The 15 right-handed patients (12 men, 3 women) had si gnificantly larger left total basal ganglia volumes, which included la rger globus pallidus and lenticular nuclei on the left, but larger cau date nuclei on the right. In contrast, basal ganglia asymmetries were not seen in four left-handers. No sex differences were detected. The b asal ganglia appear to belong to an increasing number of CNS structure s that display anatomical hemispheric lateralization.