Severe psychiatric disturbance and abnormalities of the corpus callosum: review and case series.

Abstract

The association between developmental defects of the corpus callosum and major psychiatric disturbance is discussed with a review of published cases. Seven new cases are presented, of which four had clear psychotic symptoms, two receiving a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Of the remainder, one had a developmental disorder affecting social interaction and speech which could be classed as Asperger's syndrome, one had a personality disorder with depressive and conversion symptoms, and the last was an adolescent boy with severe behavioural problems. The difficulties in determining the precise relevance of the callosal anomalies to these clinical manifestations are discussed especially since the prevalence of such anomalies in the population is uncertain. (y Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1993;56:85-93)

Corpus callosum area in patients with bipolar disorder with and without psychotic features: an international multicentre study

“…This may overlap with data in patients with callosal agenesis, who can exhibit severe behavioural symptoms, including manic or depressive symptomatology. 38 Taken together, these and similar results suggest an important role for CC structural abnormalities in driving impaired interhemispheric integration in patients with BD.…”

Schizophrenia, neurodevelopment and corpus callosum

“…[129][130][131] The Stroop test more specifically relates to prefrontal cortex activation (see Audenaert et al 132 for a recent confirmation). In the interhemispheric variant used by David, a color strip was projected to one visual hemifield and the color word to the other hemifield.…”

“…David 131,134 has reviewed the association between complete or partial CC agenesis and psychosis. Out of 17 cases of callosal abnormalities seven had S, four had other kinds of psychosis, three had mood disorders and two had non-psychiatric diagnoses.…”

Total agenesis of the corpus callosum in a patient with childhood-onset schizophrenia

“…An additional factor in this case is the very early onset of psychosis. Most of these patients with grossly abnormalities at the CC showed prominent positive symptoms (delusions and hallucinations) and poor response to antipsychotic drugs 5,10,25 . The diagnosis of agenesis in such patients is usually made accidentally but the diagnosis still remain as schizophrenia, although the DSM-IV diagnosis in these cases is "psychotic disorder due to a general medical condition".…”

“…In most cases accomplished by schizophrenia the agenesis is partial, involving the anterior part of the CC 3,10,11 . Schizophrenia has been described in association with pure complete agenesis in 5 case reports, usually accompanied by another brain malformations 3,5,10,11 . Its symptoms occurred in adulthood and there were no particular psychopathological features.…”