Gurvits T V, Shenton M E, Hokama H, Ohta H, Lasko N B, Gilbertson M W, Orr S P, Kikinis R, Jolesz F A, McCarley R W, Pitman R K
Research Service, VA Medical Center, Manchester, NH 03103, USA.
Biol Psychiatry. 1996 Dec 1;40(11):1091-9. doi: 10.1016/S0006-3223(96)00229-6.
This study used quantitative volumetric magnetic resonance imaging techniques to explore the neuroanatomic correlates of chronic, combat-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in seven Vietnam veterans with PTSD compared with seven nonPTSD combat veterans and eight normal nonveterans. Both left and right hippocampi were significantly smaller in the PTSD subjects compared to the Combat Control and Normal subjects, even after adjusting for age, whole brain volume, and lifetime alcohol consumption. There were no statistically significant group differences in intracranial cavity, whole brain, ventricles, ventricle:brain ratio, or amygdala. Subarachnoidal cerebrospinal fluid was increased in both veteran groups. Our finding of decreased hippocampal volume in PTSD subjects is consistent with results of other investigations which utilized only trauma-unexposed control groups. Hippocampal volume was directly correlated with combat exposure, which suggests that traumatic stress may damage the hippocampus. Alternatively, smaller hippocampi volume may be a pre-existing risk factor for combat exposure and/or the development of PTSD upon combat exposure.
本研究采用定量容积磁共振成像技术，对7名患有创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）的越南退伍军人、7名未患PTSD的参战退伍军人和8名正常非退伍军人进行研究，以探索与战斗相关的慢性创伤后应激障碍的神经解剖学关联。与战斗对照组和正常组相比，即使在调整年龄、全脑体积和终生酒精摄入量后，PTSD受试者的左右海马体仍显著更小。在颅腔、全脑、脑室、脑室与脑体积比或杏仁核方面，各组之间无统计学显著差异。两个退伍军人组的蛛网膜下腔脑脊液均增加。我们关于PTSD受试者海马体体积减小的发现与其他仅使用未经历创伤对照组的研究结果一致。海马体体积与战斗暴露直接相关，这表明创伤性应激可能会损害海马体。或者，较小的海马体体积可能是战斗暴露的预先存在的风险因素和/或战斗暴露后PTSD发生的风险因素。
