Reduced language lateralization in first-episode schizophrenia: A Near Infrared Spectroscopy Study.
Poster B47, Friday, October 21, 11:30 am - 1:00 pm, Le Baron
Po Han Chou1,2, Wei-Hao Lin1, Wan-Rung Li1; 1Taichung Veterans General Hospital, 2Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taiwan.
Background Diminished functional lateralization in language-related areas of the brain is found in chronic schizophrenia and in has been hypothesized that the reduced language lateralization is correlated with clinical symptoms in schizophrenia. However, it remains unknown if this abnormality exists at the first onset of psychotic symptoms. In the present study, we investigated the language lateralization using near infrared spectroscopy. Method A total of 29 patients with first episode schizophrenia and 33 healthy controls (HC) underwent near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) while performing a verbal fluency test (VFT). Group comparison of cortical activity was examined using Mann–Whitney U test. PANSS was used to examine the clinical symptoms of the patients. The relationship between laterality index and clinical symptoms was investigated using Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. Results The FES group exhibited significantly decreased laterality index (LI) in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) regions. However, there were no significant associations between clinical symptom severity and LI over the frontal, IFG, and temporal regions. However, negative symptoms were significantly associated with reduced brain functions over bilateral IFG during a VFT. Conclusions In comparison to HC group, we found significantly reduced LI over IFG in FES patients. But the LI was not correlated with the positive, negative, or general psychopathology subscales of the PANSS.
Topic Area: Neuroimaging