Decreased interhemispheric resting state functional connection in schizophrenic patients with auditory hallucinations

Abstract

Introduction

Auditory hallucination (AH) has been always concerned as a main core symptom of schizophrenia. However, the mechanisms of AH are still unclear.

Objectives

The aim of this study is to further explore the complicated neuroimaging mechanism of AHs from a new insight by using voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC).

Methods

Forty-two patients with AH (APG), 26 without AHs (NPG) and 82 normal controls (NC) participated in resting state fMRI scan. Correlation analyses were used to assess the relationships between VMHC and Hoffman scores. Additionally, ROI analysis was used to further know about the functional connectivity between the brain areas with changed interhemispheric FC and the whole brain.

Results

APG showed reduced VMHC in the parahippocapus, fusiform gyrus, rolandic operculum, insula, heschl's gyrus and superior temporal gyrus (STG). Hoffman score of APG group had negative correlation with VMHC in these regions. Besides, ROI analysis supported decreased interhemispheric FC in schizophrenia with AH and verified functional connectivity abnormalities in schizophrenia.

Conclusions

These findings suggest impairment of interhemispheric coordination and whole brain FC in schizophrenia with AH, which may be implicated to the neuroimaging mechanism of auditory hallucination. Furthermore, this research highly support dysconnectivity hypothesis that schizophrenia related to abnormalities in neuronal connectivity.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.