In this magnetoencephalography study the issue of hemispheric laterali
sation in patients with schizophrenia was addressed using acoustically
evoked neuromagnetic fields. The characteristics of dipoles in the su
perior temporal gyrus, the primary auditory cortex, were calculated. I
n contrast to other studies, alterations did not concern the localisat
ion, but rather the orientation of dipoles. Of pathophysiological inte
rest was that the dipoles abnormalities were found left-hemisphericall
y in male (p=0.02) and right-hemispherically in female patients with s
chizophrenia (p=0.01) when compared to controls. The findings suggest
gender-specific alterations of hemispheric lateralisation in schizophr
enia.