The Putamen and Caudate Nucleus Volume in Korean Youth by MRI Volumetry / 체질인류학회지

ABSTRACT

Corpus striatum is subcortical nuclei composed of caudate nucleus and putamen. It has been considered to be associated with motor control and learning. Dysfunction of the striatum is related to Huntington's disease, Tourette's syndrome, obsessive-compulsive disorder and schizophrenia. Nevertheless, standard Korean striatum volume was not set yet. Here, we report the striatum volume in healthy Korean youths. The subjects were composed of 57 youths (male, 28; female, 29). The MRI study was undertaken after a brief history taking and neurological examination. The DICOM files were imported into V-Works program. Volume models of the intracranial cavity, whole brain, caudate nucleus, and putamen were made and their volumes were calculated by the program. The average caudate volume was 7.23±1.18 cm³ in male group and 6.23±0.96 cm³ in female group. The average volume of putamen was 7.19±1.25 cm³ in male group and 6.38±0.86 cm³ in female group. Interestingly the right caudate volume is significantly larger in both group, although there is no difference in putamen volume. This study reports Korean corpus striatum volume in healthy volunteers. These results would provide an important standard reference for further study.