Nerland Stener, Slapø Nora Berz, Barth Claudia, Mørch-Johnsen Lynn, Jørgensen Kjetil Nordbø, Beck Dani, Wortinger Laura A, Westlye Lars T, Jönsson Erik G, Andreassen Ole A, Maximov Ivan I, Geier Oliver M, Agartz Ingrid
Department of Psychiatric Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
Norwegian Center for Mental Disorders Research (NORMENT), Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Schizophr Bull Open. 2024 Apr 17;5(1):sgae008. doi: 10.1093/schizbullopen/sgae008. eCollection 2024 Jan.
Studies have linked auditory hallucinations (AH) in schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SCZ) to altered cerebral white matter microstructure within the language and auditory processing circuitry (LAPC). However, the specificity to the LAPC remains unclear. Here, we investigated the relationship between AH and DTI among patients with SCZ using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI).
We included patients with SCZ with (AH+; = 59) and without (AH-; = 81) current AH, and 140 age- and sex-matched controls. Fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), radial diffusivity (RD), and axial diffusivity (AD) were extracted from 39 fiber tracts. We used principal component analysis (PCA) to identify general factors of variation across fiber tracts and DTI metrics. Regression models adjusted for sex, age, and age were used to compare tract-wise DTI metrics and PCA factors between AH+, AH-, and healthy controls and to assess associations with clinical characteristics.
Widespread differences relative to controls were observed for MD and RD in patients without current AH. Only limited differences in 2 fiber tracts were observed between AH+ and controls. Unimodal PCA factors based on MD, RD, and AD, as well as multimodal PCA factors, differed significantly relative to controls for AH-, but not AH+. We did not find any significant associations between PCA factors and clinical characteristics.
Contrary to previous studies, DTI metrics differed mainly in patients current AH compared to controls, indicating a widespread neuroanatomical distribution. This challenges the notion that altered DTI metrics within the LAPC is a specific feature underlying AH.
研究已将精神分裂症谱系障碍（SCZ）中的幻听（AH）与语言和听觉处理回路（LAPC）内脑白质微观结构的改变联系起来。然而，其对LAPC的特异性仍不清楚。在此，我们使用扩散张量成像（DTI）研究了SCZ患者中AH与DTI之间的关系。
我们纳入了有（AH+；n = 59）和无（AH-；n = 81）当前AH的SCZ患者，以及140名年龄和性别匹配的对照。从39条纤维束中提取分数各向异性（FA）、平均扩散率（MD）、径向扩散率（RD）和轴向扩散率（AD）。我们使用主成分分析（PCA）来识别纤维束和DTI指标的总体变异因素。使用针对性别、年龄和年龄调整的回归模型，比较AH+、AH-和健康对照之间纤维束层面的DTI指标和PCA因素，并评估与临床特征的关联。
在无当前AH的患者中，观察到相对于对照在MD和RD方面存在广泛差异。在AH+和对照之间仅观察到2条纤维束存在有限差异。基于MD、RD和AD的单峰PCA因素以及多峰PCA因素，相对于对照，AH-组有显著差异，而AH+组没有。我们未发现PCA因素与临床特征之间存在任何显著关联。
与先前研究相反，与对照相比，DTI指标主要在有当前AH的患者中存在差异，表明存在广泛的神经解剖分布。这对LAPC内DTI指标改变是AH潜在的特定特征这一观点提出了挑战。
