[Selected parameters of magnetic resonance imaging of the brain, clinical picture and recovery after treatment in schizophrenia. Preliminary report].

In forty schizophrenic (or schizophreniform disorder) patients diagnosed according to DSM-IV, the magnetic resonance imaging was performed. The T2 relaxation time was measured in selected brain regions from the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex as well as in amygdala. These results were compared with clinical parameters regarding severity of psychopathology and improvement after neuroleptic treatment. The mean T2 values of grey matter of right inferior frontal gyrus were significantly higher in patients with schizophreniform disorders (those patients were clinically diagnosed as suffering from cycloid psychoses) than in other types of schizophrenia. The T2 values of this region correlated inversely with the severity of negative symptoms before treatment. The T2 values of gray matter of left inferior frontal gyrus correlated positively with the severity of schizophrenic symptoms before treatment. Mean T2 values of left amygdala were significantly higher in patients showing less favorable improvement after neuroleptic treatment in comparison to those who improved better. No correlation was found between the presence of brain atrophy and T2 values in brain regions studied. The results allow to suggest that the measurement of T2 relaxation time might reveal interesting relations between clinical picture and neuroradiologic findings in schizophrenia, however clinical significance of such parameters still requires further elaboration.