BACKGROUNDAuditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs) of schizophrenia have been associated with structural and functional alterations of some brain regions. However, the brain regional homogeneity (ReHo) alterations specific to AVHs of schizophrenia remain unclear. In the current study, we aimed to investigate ReHo alterations specific to schizophrenic AVHs.

METHODSThirty-five schizophrenic patients with AVH, 41 schizophrenic patients without AVHs, and fifty healthy subjects underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. ReHo differences across the three groups were tested using a voxel-wise analysis.

RESULTSCompared with the healthy control group, the two schizophrenia groups showed significantly increased ReHo in the right caudate and inferior temporal gyrus and decreased ReHo in the bilateral postcentral gyrus and thalamus and the right inferior occipital gyrus (false discovery rate corrected, P < 0.05). More importantly, the AVH group exhibited significantly increased ReHo in the left precuneus compared with the non-AVH group. However, using correlation analysis, we did not find any correlation between the auditory hallucination rating scale score and the ReHo of brain regions.

CONCLUSIONSOur results suggest that increased ReHo in the left precuneus may be a pathological feature exclusive to schizophrenic AVHs.

Adult ; Female ; Hallucinations ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Parietal Lobe ; physiopathology ; Schizophrenia ; pathology ; physiopathology

We report a case of extraventricular neurocytoma(left parietal lobe) in a young man presented with hemiparesis. The tumor, a radiologically well-circumscribed, cystic and enhancing mass, was partially removed. The patient, who received postoperative radiotherapy, is living well after 15 months of follow-up. Pathology showed a well-differentiated lesion composed of uniform, round cells with perinuclear halos in a neuropil background, immunohistochemically positive for neuronal markers. This was a cystic extraventricular neurocytoma(glio-neuronal tumor) arising from the left parietal lobe. Its features were consistent with neurocytoma pathologically and were different from those of intraventricular neurocytoma pathophysiologically. We outline the morphological and immunohistochemical evaluations necessary to recognize this rare tumor.
Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Neurocytoma* ; Neurons ; Neuropil ; Paresis ; Parietal Lobe ; Pathology ; Rabeprazole ; Radiotherapy ; Synaptophysin

Meningioma is relatively common, benign, and extra-axial tumor accounting for about 20% of primary brain and spinal cord tumors. The World Health Organization (WHO) classified these tumors into Grade I (benign), Grade II (atypical), and Grade III (anaplastic) meningioma. Grade I meningioma which is slowly growing tumor and have some rare subtypes. Among them, metaplastic subtype is defined as a tumor containing focal or widespread mesenchymal components including osseous, cartilaginous, lipomatous, myxoid or xanthomatous tissue, singly or in combinations. We report a rare metaplastic meningioma overspreading nearly whole cerebral convexity from main extra-axial tumor bulk in the parietal lobe.
Brain ; Brain Neoplasms ; Meningioma* ; Parietal Lobe ; Pathology ; Spinal Cord Neoplasms ; World Health Organization

Voxel based morphometry (VBM) methods are used to detect the difference in brain structures between the posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) sufferers and the normal controls. Standard VBM method can detect the difference of the gray matter or white matter densities while the optimized VBM method can detect the difference of gray matter or white matter volumes in the whole brain. The experiments showed that for the patient group, gray matter density or volumes significantly increased in the right frontal lobe, middle frontal gyrus, vermis, left caudate and parietal lobe, compared with the normal controls. However, in the left frontal lobe and middle frontal gyrus, gray matter density significantly decreased. There is no significant difference in white matter between the two groups. These results are consistent with those of the fMRI, which not only provide the evidence for further study of the pathogeny in PTSD but also validate the efficiency of the VBM methods for detecting the difference in the whole brain structure.
Adult ; Brain ; pathology ; Female ; Frontal Lobe ; pathology ; Humans ; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Parietal Lobe ; pathology ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic ; pathology

The authors studied 60 children (aged 4 months to 9 years) with cerebral palsy by means of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) of the brain. MRI showed normal in 15 cases (25.0%) and deep white matter pathology in 37 cases (61.7%), corpus callosum abnormality in 29 cases (48.3%). In addition, abnormal intensity of thalamus or basal ganglia and delayed myelination were found in minor cases. In all of the patients except for 1 case, SPECT showed the abnormal findings SPECT demonstrated hypoperfusion of thalamus in 58 cases (96.7%), cerebellum in 27 cases (45.0%), frontal and parietal lobe in 26 cases (43.3%), basal ganglia in 23 cases (38.3%) and temporal lobe in 22 cases (36.7%). There was no significant correlation between the severity of motor developmental impairment and the radiologic findings. The results of this study suggest that MRI of the brain provides the anatomical information such as deep white matter and corpus callosum pathologies resulted from the hypoxic-ischemic insult and SPECT of the brain is a very sensitive tool for the assessment of the functional abnormalities in cerebral palsy.
Basal Ganglia ; Brain* ; Cerebellum ; Cerebral Palsy* ; Child* ; Corpus Callosum ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging* ; Myelin Sheath ; Parietal Lobe ; Pathology ; Temporal Lobe ; Thalamus ; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon*

We report a case of ganglioneurocytoma manifesting as a complex partial seizure in a young adult male. MR images depicted a well-marginated cystic mass with a heterogeneous solid portion abutting the dura in the parietal lobe. The solid portion showed minimal heterogeneous enhancement, and pressure erosion of the overlying calvarium had occurred. Following gross total resection, the clinical outcome was satisfactory, with no further seizures, and during the five-year follow-up period, the tumor did not recur.
Adult ; Brain Neoplasms/*pathology ; Case Report ; Follow-Up Studies ; Ganglioneuroma/*pathology ; Human ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Neurocytoma/*pathology ; Parietal Lobe/*pathology

OBJECTIVETo examine the relationship between tic symptom severity and amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (ALFF) brain functioning of the first-episode Tourette syndrome through resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

METHODSixteen subjects were all recruited from the outpatient department of pediatrics, Beijing Anding Hospital, Capital Medical University and were all first-episode Tourette syndrome patients [male: 13, female: 3; age: 6-16 years; mean age: (11.00 ± 2.92) years]; mean education time: (5.06 ± 2.86) years; course: 14-104 months; mean (48.44 ± 25.00) months; scores of YGTSS at baseline: tic severity score: 37.88 ± 5.39; global damage score: 25.63 ± 12.63. All the subjects experienced resting-state fMRI scans and ALFF were calculated in three frequency ranges: 0.01-0.1 Hz, 0.01-0.027 Hz and 0.027-0.073 Hz. First-episode Tourette syndrome patients and 16 gender, age, and education-matched normal controls experienced resting-state fMRI scans. Correlation analysis was performed in between the amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and the severity of tic symptom. P < 0.05 and k value ≥ 10 were considered to be of significance.

RESULTIn tic symptom patients, tic severity (total tic scores of YGTSS) was positively correlated with the ALFF values in the orbital part of left superior frontal gyrus (0.01-0.1 Hz:r = 0.83,0.027-0.073 Hz:r = 0.91, P < 0.05, respectively), right middle frontal gyrus (0.01-0.027 Hz:r = 0.85,0.027-0.073 Hz:r = 0.57, P < 0.05, respectively ) and orbital part of left middle frontal gyrus (0.01-0.027 Hz:r = 0.64, P < 0.05). Tic severity was negatively correlated with the ALFF values in the right calcarine fissure and surrounding cortex (0.01-0.1 Hz:r = -0.65,0.01-0.027 Hz:r = -0.69, P < 0.05, respectively ) and the left calcarine fissure and surrounding cortex (0.027-0.073 Hz:r = -0.81, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONTic symptom severity of the first-episode Tourette syndrome is associated with abnormal brain activity patterns of specific brain areas.

Adolescent ; Brain ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Case-Control Studies ; Cerebral Cortex ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Child ; Female ; Frontal Lobe ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; methods ; Male ; Parietal Lobe ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Rest ; Severity of Illness Index ; Tic Disorders ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Tourette Syndrome ; pathology ; physiopathology

To examine regional abnormalities in the brains of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), we assessed the gray matter (GM) density using voxel-based morphometry (VBM). We compared magnetic resonance images (MRIs) acquired from 71 OCD patients and 71 age- and gender-matched normal controls and examined the relationship between GM density and various clinical variables in OCD patients. We also investigated whether GM density differs among the subtypes of OCD compared to healthy controls. We detected significant reduction of GM in the inferior frontal gyrus, the medial frontal gyrus, the insula, the cingulate gyrus, and the superior temporal gyrus of OCD patients. A significant increase in GM density was observed in the postcentral gyrus, the thalamus, and the putamen. Some of these regions, including the insular and postcentral gyrus, were also associated with the severity of obsessive- compulsive symptoms. These findings indicate that the frontal-subcortical circuitry is dysfunctional in OCD, and suggest that the parietal cortex may play a role in the pathophysiology of this disease.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Brain/*pathology ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder/*pathology ; Parietal Lobe/pathology ; Sex Characteristics

PURPOSES: This study reports the possible causes of seizure recurrence in patients underwent previous epilepsy surgery, and surgical strategy for resection of the additional epileptogenic zone locating at the distant area to the site of first resection. METHODS: A total of 10 patients with previous surgery due to intractable epilepsy were studied. Five of these underwent standard temporal lobectomy, four extratemporal resection, and one corticoamygdalectomy. Seizure outcome of these were class III-IV. Evaluation methods for reoperation included MRI, 3D-surface rendering of MRI, PET, prologned video-EEG recording with surface electrodes and subdural grid electrodes. Additional resection was done in the frontal lobe in two, in the temporal lobe in three, in the parietal lobe in two, and in the supplementary sensori-motor area in two. Tumor in the superior frontal gyrus in the left hemisphere was removed in one patient. Extent of resection was decided based on the results of ictal subdural grid EEGs and MRI findings. Awake anesthesia and electrocortical stimulation were performed in the two patients for defining the eloquent area. RESULTS: Histopathologic findings revealed extratemporal cortical dysplasia in six, hippocampal sclerosis and cortical dysplasia of the temporal neocortex in one, neuronal gliosis in two, and meningioma in one. Previous pathology of the five patients with cortical dysplasia in the second operation was hippocampal sclerosis plus cortical dysplasia of the temporal neocortex. After reoperation, seizure outcomes were class I in six, class II in three, class III in one at the mean follow-up period of 17.5 months. Characteristically, patients in class II-III after reoperation showed histopathologic findings of hippocampal sclerosis plus temporal neocortical cortical dysplasia plus extratemporal cortical dysplasia. CONCLUSIONS: Seizure recurrence after epilepsy surgery was related with the presence of an additional epileptogenic zone distant to the site of first operation, and the majority of the histopathology of the surgical specimens was cortical dysplasia. In particular, hippocampal sclerosis plus temporal neocortical cortical dysplasia was highly related with seizure recurrence in patients with previous operation. In these patients, multimodal evaluation methods were necessary in defining the additional epileptogenic zone.
Anesthesia ; Electrodes ; Electroencephalography ; Epilepsy* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Frontal Lobe ; Gliosis ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Malformations of Cortical Development ; Meningioma ; Neocortex ; Neurons ; Parietal Lobe ; Pathology ; Recurrence ; Reoperation ; Sclerosis ; Seizures ; Temporal Lobe

OBJECTIVETo study the characteristics of spectra on proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) and its value in patients with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes (MELAS).

METHODSSeven clinically diagnosed patients with MELAS underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 1H-MRS examinations. The 1H-MRS techniques, characteristics of the spectra, and its correlation with the laboratory tests were analyzed.

RESULTSCerebral abnormalities were revealed in all 7 patients on conventional MR images, and most abnormal signals were observed in bilateral occipital, parietal, and temporal lobes. We found 4 cases with basal ganglia involvement, 2 cases with mild frontal lobe lesions, and 1 case with involvement of lateral cerebral peduncles and thalami. Additionally, 1 patient was involved with left insular lobe. Spectra from prominent lesions in brain parenchyma showed lactate doublet peak in 6 patients, 3 of whom were also noted lactate peak in ventricular cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

CONCLUSION1H-MRS may provide more direct information about the metabolism changes, which aids to affirm the diagnosis, and may replace the conventional invasive method of quantifying lactate in CSF.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Basal Ganglia ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Cerebral Cortex ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Child ; Female ; Humans ; Lactic Acid ; metabolism ; MELAS Syndrome ; diagnosis ; physiopathology ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy ; Male ; Parietal Lobe ; pathology ; physiopathology