Choline-containing compounds detected by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy in the basal ganglia in bipolar disorder. |
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| Authors: | T Kato H Hamakawa T Shioiri J Murashita Y Takahashi S Takahashi T Inubushi |
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| Affiliation: | Department of Psychiatry, Shiga University of Medical Science, Japan. |
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| Abstract: | Choline-containing compounds (Cho) were examined by proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) in the left subcortical region, including basal ganglia, in 19 euthymic patients with bipolar disorder and 19 age-matched normal controls. Ten of the patients were treated with lithium; the remaining 9 were not treated with lithium for at least 30 d. The Cho to creatine + phosphocreatine (Cr) peak ratio in the bipolar patients (0.75 +/- 0.38 [mean +/- SD]) was higher than that in the normal controls (0.52 +/- 0.26, P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the Cho:Cr peak ratio between patients treated with lithium (0.63 +/- 0.36) and without lithium (0.89 +/- 0.35). These results do not support the hypothesis that lithium increases the brain choline-containing compounds, but rather imply that membrane breakdown may occur in the basal ganglia of patients with bipolar disorder. |
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