Jn. Giedd et al., MRI assessment of children with obsessive-compulsive disorder or tics associated with streptococcal infection, AM J PSYCHI, 157(2), 2000, pp. 281-283
Objective: The authors assessed selective basal ganglia involvement in a su
bgroup of children with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and/or ties bel
ieved to be associated with streptococcal infection. Method: Using computer
-assisted morphometric techniques, they analyzed the cerebral magnetic reso
nance images of 34 children with presumed streptococcus-associated OCD and/
or ties and 82 healthy comparison children who were matched for age and sex
. Results: The average sizes of the caudate, putamen, and globus pallidus,
but not of the thalamus or total cerebrum, were significantly greater in th
e group of children with streptococcus-associated OCD and/or ties than in t
he healthy children. The differences were similar to those found previously
for subjects with Sydenham's chorea compared with normal subjects. Conclus
ions: These results support the hypothesis that there is a distinct subgrou
p of subjects with OCD and/or ties who have enlarged basal ganglia, These f
indings are consistent with the hypothesis of an autoimmune response to str
eptococcal infection.