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Magnetic resonance imaging studies on autism and childhood-onset schizophrenia in children and adolescents – a review

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 June 2014

Bertine Lahuis ,
Chantal Kemner  and
Herman Van Engeland
Bertine Lahuis*
Affiliation:
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Utrecht, the Netherlands
Chantal Kemner
Affiliation:
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Utrecht, the Netherlands
Herman Van Engeland
Affiliation:
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Utrecht, the Netherlands
*
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, ume Utrecht PO Box 85500, 3508 GA Utrecht, the Netherlands e-mail: be.lahuis@azu.ne
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Abstract

Objective:

To find out whether the neurodevelopmental disorders autism and childhood-onset schizophrenia have a common developmental pathway and whether the abnormalities detected are ‘disorder-specific’, by reviewing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies.

Methods:

As a result of a Medline search, we were able to access 28 studies on autism and 12 studies on childhood-onset schizophrenia, which focused on children and adolescents.

Results:

Larger lateral ventricles were found to be a common abnormality in both disorders. ‘Disorder-specific’ abnormalities in patients with autism were larger brains, a larger thalamic area, and a smaller right cingulate gyrus. Subjects with childhood-onset schizophrenia were found to have smaller brains, a smaller amygdalum and thalamus, and a larger nucleus caudatus. In subjects with childhood-onset schizophrenia, abnormalities appeared to progress over a limited period of time.

Conclusions:

Because the study designs varied so much, the results should be interpreted cautiously. Before abnormalities found in the disorders can be designated as equal or ‘disorder-specific’, it will be essential to perform large longitudinal and cross-sectional follow-up studies.

Keywords

autismchildhood-onset schizophreniamagnetic resonance imaging
Type
Review Article
Information
Acta Neuropsychiatrica , Volume 15 , Issue 3 , June 2003 , pp. 140 - 147
Copyright
Copyright © 2003 Blackwell Munksgaard

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