Reduction of orbital frontal cortex volume in geriatric depression

Background: Postmortem studies have documented abnormalities in the medial orbital frontal cortex in depressed patients. In this study we evaluated whether atrophy of this region can be identified in older depressed patients using magnetic resonance imaging. Methods: Twenty elderly patients meeting...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biological psychiatry (1969) 2000-11, Vol.48 (10), p.971-975
Main Authors: Lai, Te-Jen, Payne, Martha E, Byrum, Christopher E, Steffens, David C, Krishnan, K.Ranga R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Aged
aging
Biological and medical sciences
circuit
Depression
Depressive Disorder - pathology
Depressive Disorder - psychology
Female
Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Medical sciences
Mood disorders
neuroimaging
neuropsychology
orbital frontal cortex
Prefrontal Cortex - pathology
Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
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Summary:Background: Postmortem studies have documented abnormalities in the medial orbital frontal cortex in depressed patients. In this study we evaluated whether atrophy of this region can be identified in older depressed patients using magnetic resonance imaging. Methods: Twenty elderly patients meeting DSM-IV criteria for major depression and 20 matched control subjects were studied. The orbital frontal cortex was measured in both hemispheres using magnetic resonance imaging. Results: Depressive patients had reduced volume in the total orbital frontal cortex, right orbital frontal cortex, and left orbital frontal cortex. Conclusions: Our finding of a reduction in orbital frontal cortex volume in both sides of the brain suggests that this region of the brain may have a critical role in the development of depression and raises questions about the etiology of the changes.
ISSN:0006-3223
1873-2402
DOI:10.1016/S0006-3223(00)01042-8