ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: Disrupted integrities of the fornix and stria terminalis have been suggested in schizophrenia. However, very few studies have focused on the fornix and stria terminalis comparing first-episode schizophrenia (FESZ), chronic schizophrenia (CS), and healthy controls (HCs) with the application of diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) technique. The objective of this study is to compare the connectivity of the fornix and stria terminalis among FESZ, CS, and HCs. METHODS: We included the 44 FESZ patients, 39 CS patients and 20 HCs in this study. Voxel-wise statistical analysis of the fractional anisotropy (FA) data was performed using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics to analyze the connectivity of fornix and stria terminalis. In addition, the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS) and the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) were used to evaluate clinical symptom severities. RESULTS: There were no significant differences between the FESZ, CS, and HCs in age, sex, education years. The SAPS and SANS scores of the schizophrenia groups showed no significant differences. FA values of the right fornix cres/stria terminalis in the CS group were significantly lower than those in FESZ and HCs. There were no significant differences of FA values of the right fornix cres/stria terminalis between the FESZ and the HCs. Pearson correlation analyses revealed that significant correlation between FA values of the right fornix cres/stria terminalies of the the FESZ group and positive, negative symptom scales, and FA values of the right fornix cres/stria terminalis of the CS group and negative symptom scales. CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that FA values of the fornix and stria terminalis in the CS were lower than in the FESZ and the HCs. These results suggest that the fornix and stria terminalis can play a role in pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Thus current study can broaden our understanding of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.
Subject(s)
Humans , Anisotropy , Education , Fornix, Brain , Schizophrenia , Septal Nuclei , Weights and Measures , White MatterABSTRACT
Fornix infarction is a kind of cerebral infarction in special sites with memory disorder as its main manifestation, which is rare in clinical practice. Because the isolated fornix infarction is not often accompanied by obvious positive signs of nervous system, the patients complained fewer symptoms. The related manifestations were mostly provided by family members, which is prone to misdiagnosis and missed diagnosis. This article reviews fornix infarction from the aspect of anatomy, blood supply, infarction etiology, clinical manifestations, possible mechanisms, and imaging features by summarizing the available case reports.
ABSTRACT
We report two autopsy cases that revealed the partial absence of the septum pellucidum with ventriculomegaly. In each case, the brain showed mild dilatation of both frontal horns of the lateral ventricles, normal third and fourth ventricles and no aqueductal stenosis. The posterior portion of the septum pellucidum was absent and the fornices were fused in a single midline nodule, abnormally displaced to a caudal position and lodged in the foramina of Monro. The brain base showed no apparent abnormalities; the optic nerves were well developed. We conclude that the caudally displaced fornix in the absence of the septum pellucidum may have intermittently obstructed the foramina of Monro and induced mild ventriculomegaly.
ABSTRACT
Even a single brain infarct can cause dementia when it occurs in functionally critical areas of the brain. A 71- year-old female developed sudden cognitive impairment without any other focal neurologic deficits. A brain MRI revealed a bilateral anterior fornix infarction. Neuropsychological evaluation revealed verbal and visual memory deficits, visuospatial dysfunction, and frontal executive dysfunction. The cognitive impairment did not improve for 3 months and the patient showed impairments in daily activities. We report a patient who demonstrated strategic infarct dementia after a bilateral anterior fornix infarction.