TY - JOUR
T1 - Reduced left anterior cingulate volumes in untreated bipolar patients
AU - Sassi, Roberto B.
AU - Brambilla, Paolo
AU - Hatch, John P.
AU - Nicoletti, Mark A.
AU - Mallinger, Alan G.
AU - Frank, Ellen
AU - Kupfer, David J.
AU - Keshavan, Matcheri S.
AU - Soares, Jair C.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported in part by Grants MH 01736, MH 29618, and MH 30915 from the National Institute of Mental Health, the Theodore and Vada Stanley Foundation, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD), and the CAPES Foundation (Brazil). JCS was the 1999–2001 NARSAD Selo Investigator.
PY - 2004/10/1
Y1 - 2004/10/1
N2 - Functional and morphologic abnormalities of the cingulate cortex have been reported in mood disorder patients. To examine the involvement of anatomic abnormalities of the cingulate in bipolar disorder, we measured the volumes of this structure in untreated and lithium-treated bipolar patients and healthy control subjects, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The volumes of gray matter at the right and left anterior and posterior cingulate cortices were measured in 11 bipolar patients not taking any psychotropic medications (aged 38 ± 11 years, 5 women), 16 bipolar patients treated with lithium monotherapy (aged 33 ± 11 years, 7 women), and 39 healthy control subjects (aged 37 ± 10 years, 14 women). Volumetric measurements were made with T1-weighted coronal MRI images, with 1.5-mm-thick slices, at 1.5T, and were done blindly. Using analysis of covariance with age and intracranial volume as covariates, we found that untreated bipolar patients had decreased left anterior cingulate volumes compared with healthy control subjects [2.4 ± .3 cm 3 and 2.9 ± .6 cm 3, respectively; F(1,58) = 6.4, p =. 042] and compared with lithium-treated patients [3.3 ± .5 cm 3; F(1,58) = 11.7, p =. 003]. The cingulate volumes in lithium-treated patients were not significantly different from those of healthy control subjects. Our findings indicate that anatomic abnormalities in left anterior cingulate are present in bipolar patients. Furthermore, our results suggest that lithium treatment might influence cingulate volumes in bipolar patients, which could possibly reflect postulated neuroprotective effects of lithium.
AB - Functional and morphologic abnormalities of the cingulate cortex have been reported in mood disorder patients. To examine the involvement of anatomic abnormalities of the cingulate in bipolar disorder, we measured the volumes of this structure in untreated and lithium-treated bipolar patients and healthy control subjects, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The volumes of gray matter at the right and left anterior and posterior cingulate cortices were measured in 11 bipolar patients not taking any psychotropic medications (aged 38 ± 11 years, 5 women), 16 bipolar patients treated with lithium monotherapy (aged 33 ± 11 years, 7 women), and 39 healthy control subjects (aged 37 ± 10 years, 14 women). Volumetric measurements were made with T1-weighted coronal MRI images, with 1.5-mm-thick slices, at 1.5T, and were done blindly. Using analysis of covariance with age and intracranial volume as covariates, we found that untreated bipolar patients had decreased left anterior cingulate volumes compared with healthy control subjects [2.4 ± .3 cm 3 and 2.9 ± .6 cm 3, respectively; F(1,58) = 6.4, p =. 042] and compared with lithium-treated patients [3.3 ± .5 cm 3; F(1,58) = 11.7, p =. 003]. The cingulate volumes in lithium-treated patients were not significantly different from those of healthy control subjects. Our findings indicate that anatomic abnormalities in left anterior cingulate are present in bipolar patients. Furthermore, our results suggest that lithium treatment might influence cingulate volumes in bipolar patients, which could possibly reflect postulated neuroprotective effects of lithium.
KW - Affective disorders
KW - MRI
KW - bipolar disorder
KW - cingulate
KW - mood disorders
KW - neuroimaging
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U2 - 10.1016/j.biopsych.2004.07.005
DO - 10.1016/j.biopsych.2004.07.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 15450781
AN - SCOPUS:4644280205
VL - 56
SP - 467
EP - 475
JO - Biological Psychiatry
JF - Biological Psychiatry
SN - 0006-3223
IS - 7
ER -