Magnetic resonance imaging study of corpus callosum abnormalities in patients with bipolar disorder

Background This study was conducted to further examine the hypothesis of abnormalities in size of corpus callosum in subjects with bipolar disorder. Methods Sixteen right-handed DSM-IV bipolar I patients and 27 right-handed healthy control subjects were studied. A 1.5-T GE Signa magnet was used, and three-dimensional gradient echo imaging (spoiled gradient recall acquisition) was conducted. Area measurements of corpus callosum were obtained blindly, with a semi-automated software, by a well-trained rater. Results Right-handed bipolar I patients had significantly smaller total corpus callosum, genu, posterior body, and isthmus areas compared with right-handed healthy control subjects (analysis of covariance with age, gender, and intracranial volume as covariates, p< .05). Partial correlation analyses, controlled for intracranial volumes, found a significant inverse relationship between age and total callosal, genu, anterior body, isthmus, and circularity in healthy control subjects (p< .05) but not in bipolar patients (p> .05). Conclusions Smaller callosal areas may lead to altered inter-hemispheric communication and be involved in the pathophysiology and cognitive impairment found in bipolar disorder.