Cerebral perfusion inhomogeneities in schizophrenia demonstrated with single photon emission computed tomography and Tc99m-hexamethylpropyleneamineoxim

Abstract

— Cerebral blood flow was measured in relative terms with Tc99in-hexamethylpropyleneamineoxim (HMPAO) and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) in 28 female schizophrenic patients (20 acute and 8 chronic) classified according to DSM-III. Eleven normals served as controls. The acute patients were classified according to positive and negative symptoms. Patients with predominantly positive symptoms showed by and large normal and homogeneous cerebral isotope uptake. Those with negative symptoms, and the chronic patients, showed inhomogeneous tracer uptake with multiple regions of hypoperfusion in slices 4–6 cm above the orbitomeatal line. The findings support in principle the notion that schizophrenia with negative or chronic symptoms does not affect the whole brain homogeneously. Brain imaging with Tc99m-HMPAO and SPECT might be used to distinguish various types of schizophrenia.