Grassi S, Orsenigo G, Serati M, Caletti E, Altamura AC, Buoli M. Cognitive correlates of neuroimaging abnormalities in the onset of schizophrenia: A case report. World J Psychiatr 2017; 7(2): 128-132 [PMID: 28713691 DOI: 10.5498/wjp.v7.i2.128]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Silvia Grassi, MD, Department of Psychiatry, University of Milan, Fondazione IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Mangiagalli e Regina Elena, Via F. Sforza 35, 20122 Milan, Italy. silvia.grassi1@unimi.it
Research Domain of This Article
Psychiatry
Article-Type of This Article
Case Report
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Psychiatr. Jun 22, 2017; 7(2): 128-132 Published online Jun 22, 2017. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v7.i2.128
Cognitive correlates of neuroimaging abnormalities in the onset of schizophrenia: A case report
Silvia Grassi, Giulia Orsenigo, Marta Serati, Elisabetta Caletti, Alfredo Carlo Altamura, Massimiliano Buoli
Silvia Grassi, Giulia Orsenigo, Marta Serati, Elisabetta Caletti, Alfredo Carlo Altamura, Massimiliano Buoli, Department of Psychiatry, University of Milan, Fondazione IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Mangiagalli e Regina Elena, 20122 Milan, Italy
Author contributions: Grassi S and Orsenigo G collected data; Serati M revised report; Caletti E performed neuropsychological tests; Altamura AC designed the report; Buoli M wrote the paper.
Institutional review board statement: This case report was exempted from IRB standards of University of Milan.
Informed consent statement: Patient gave his written informed consent and permission for disclosure of his protected health information.
Conflict-of-interest statement: Professor Altamura has served as a consultant or on Advisory Boards for Roche, Merck, Astra Zeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, Janssen/Cilag and Lundbeck. Drs Grassi, Orsenigo, Serati, Caletti and Buoli do not have any affiliation with or financial interest in any organization that might pose a conflict of interest with the present article.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Silvia Grassi, MD, Department of Psychiatry, University of Milan, Fondazione IRCCS Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Mangiagalli e Regina Elena, Via F. Sforza 35, 20122 Milan, Italy. silvia.grassi1@unimi.it
Telephone: +39-02-55035983 Fax: +39-02-55033190
Received: December 17, 2016 Peer-review started: December 19, 2016 First decision: April 18, 2017 Revised: April 27, 2017 Accepted: May 12, 2017 Article in press: May 15, 2017 Published online: June 22, 2017 Processing time: 187 Days and 10.4 Hours
Abstract
Increasing evidence shows that cognitive impairment and brain abnormalities can appear early in the first episodes of schizophrenia, but it is currently debated how brain changes can correlate with clinical presentation of schizophrenic patients. Of note, this report describes the case of a young schizophrenic male presenting parietal magnetic resonance/positron emission tomography abnormalities and cognitive impairment, documented by specific neuropsychological tests. In our knowledge only few studies have investigated if neuropsychological abnormalities could be concomitant with both structural and functional neuroimaging. This case shows that impairment in specific cognitive domains is associated with structural/functional brain abnormalities in the corresponding brain areas (frontal and parietal lobes), supporting the hypothesis of disconnectivity, involving a failure to integrate anatomical and functional pathways. Future research would define the role of cognitive impairment and neurodegeneration in psychiatric nosography and, in particular, their role in the early phases of illness and long-term outcome of schizophrenic patients.
Core tip: Schizophrenia is associated with impairment in executive function, verbal memory, verbal fluency and attention. Neuropsychological tests are associated with structural and functional brain alterations. This case report is an example of the potential correlation between clinical symptoms (e.g., cognitive impairment) and brain changes. These data may help in the prediction of possible outcome of schizophrenia patients.
