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. 2022 Jan 25:12:747386.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.747386. eCollection 2021.

Subcortical Brain Volumes Relate to Neurocognition in First-Episode Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, Major Depression Disorder, and Healthy Controls

Jing Shi  1 , Hua Guo  2 , Sijia Liu  1 , Wei Xue  3 , Fengmei Fan  1 , Hui Li  1 , Hongzhen Fan  1 , Huimei An  1 , Zhiren Wang  1 , Shuping Tan  1 , Fude Yang  1 , Yunlong Tan  1
Affiliations

Subcortical Brain Volumes Relate to Neurocognition in First-Episode Schizophrenia, Bipolar Disorder, Major Depression Disorder, and Healthy Controls

Jing Shi et al. Front Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Objective: To explore differences and similarities in relationships between subcortical structure volumes and neurocognition among the four subject groups, including first-episode schizophrenia (FES), bipolar disorder (BD), major depression disorder (MDD), and healthy controls (HCs).

Methods: We presented findings from subcortical volumes and neurocognitive analyses of 244 subjects (109 patients with FES; 63 patients with BD, 30 patients with MDD, and 42 HCs). Using the FreeSurfer software, volumes of 16 selected subcortical structures were automatically segmented and analyzed for relationships with results from seven neurocognitive tests from the MATRICS (Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia) Cognitive Consensus Battery (MCCB).

Results: Larger left lateral ventricle volumes in FES and BD, reduced bilateral hippocampus and amygdala volumes in FES, and lower bilateral amygdala volumes in BD and MDD were presented compared with HCs, and both FES and BD had a lower bilateral amygdala volume than MDD; there were seven cognitive dimension, five cognitive dimension, and two cognitive dimension impairments in FES, BD, and MDD, respectively; significant relationships were found between subcortical volumes and neurocognition in FES and BD but not in MDD and HCs; besides age and years of education, some subcortical volumes can predict neurocognitive performances variance.

Conclusion: The different degrees of subcortical volume lessening may contribute to the differences in cognitive impairment among the three psychiatric disorders.

Keywords: MRI; bipolar disorder; cognitive; first episode; major depression disorder; subcortical.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(A,B) Cohen's d effect sizes 95% CI and for regional brain volume differences. Effect sizes for all subcortical volumes depicted were corrected for age and intracranial volume (ICV). FES, first episode schizophrenia; BD, bipolar disorder; MDD, major depression disorder; HCs, healthy controls.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparison of cognitive function among groups. * represents Bonfferoni corrected P < 0.05/7=0.007. SOP: speed of processing, AAV: attention and vigilance, WM: working memory, HVLT: Hopkins Verbal Learning Test, BVMT: Brief Visuospatial Memory TestM, SC: social cognition, CS: composite T-score, FES: first episode schizophrenia, BD: bipolar disorder, MDD: major depression disorder, HCs: healthy controls.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Relationships between subcortical volumes and neurocognition. FES, first episode schizophrenia; BD, bipolar disorder.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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