Bipolar Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Bipolar, including details on bipolar disorder, symptoms, treatment, depression, medication.

Magnetic resonance imaging abnormalities in young euthymic patients with bipolar affective disorder.

El-Badri SM, Cousins DA, Parker S, Ashton HC, McAllister VL, Ferrier IN, Moore PB

Department of Psychiatry, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Royal Victoria Infirmary, Queen Victoria Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4LP, UK.

Temporal lobe and limbic structures may be abnormal in bipolar disorder. T2-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans frequently show deep white matter lesions. MRI was performed on 50 young (19-39 years) euthymic patients with bipolar disorder and 26 controls. Mean temporal lobe volumes were reduced in patients (right, 9.42 cm3; left, 6.33 cm3) but this could not but this could not be ascribed to a specific structure. Deep white matter lesions were present in 5 patients but no controls raising questions of their aetiological significance.

Published 3 July 2006 in Br J Psychiatry, 189: 81-2.
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