Hippocampal morphometry in depressed patients and control subjects: relations to anxiety symptoms

Background: Although it has been hypothesized that glucocorticoid hypersecretion in depressed patients leads to neuronal atrophy in the hippocampus, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) –based morphometry studies of the hippocampus to date have produced mixed results. Methods: In our MRI study, hippocam...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biological psychiatry (1969) 2001-12, Vol.50 (12), p.960-964
Main Authors: Rusch, Brett D, Abercrombie, Heather C, Oakes, Terrence R, Schaefer, Stacey M, Davidson, Richard J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Anxiety - pathology
Atrophy
Biological and medical sciences
Brain - pathology
Case-Control Studies
Depression
Depressive Disorder - pathology
Depressive Disorder - psychology
Depressive Disorder, Major - pathology
Dominance, Cerebral
Female
hippocampus
Hippocampus - pathology
Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Mood disorders
morphometry
MRI
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
volumetry
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Summary:Background: Although it has been hypothesized that glucocorticoid hypersecretion in depressed patients leads to neuronal atrophy in the hippocampus, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) –based morphometry studies of the hippocampus to date have produced mixed results. Methods: In our MRI study, hippocampal volumes were measured in 25 depressed patients (13 with melancholia and 12 without melancholia) and 15 control subjects. Results: No significant differences in hippocampus volumes were found between any of the subject groups, although within subjects right hippocampal volumes were found to be significantly larger than left hippocampal volumes. Additionally, right and total (left + right) hippocampal volumes in control and depressed subjects were found to be positively correlated with trait anxiety as measured by the state/trait anxiety inventory. Conclusions: Because our subject group is younger than those in studies reporting hippocampal atrophy, we conclude that longitudinal studies will be necessary for investigation of the lifelong course of hippocampal volumetry.
ISSN:0006-3223
1873-2402
DOI:10.1016/S0006-3223(01)01248-3