Brain morphology and neurological soft signs in adolescents with first-episode psychosis

Abstract

Background: Adolescents with first-episode psychosis have increased severity of neurological soft signs when compared with controls, but it is unclear whether increased severity of neurological soft signs is an expression of specific structural brain deficits. Aims: To examine whether increased severity of neurological soft signs was associated with decreased brain volumes in adolescents with first-episode psychosis. Method: Brain scans were obtained for 70 adolescents (less than 18 years of age) with first-episode psychosis (duration of positive symptoms less than 6 months). Volumes were assessed using voxel-based morphometry and through segmentation of anatomical structures. Results: Increased severity of sensory integration neurological soft signs correlated with smaller right and left thalamus volume, whereas increased severity of sequencing of complex motor acts neurological soft signs correlated with smaller right caudate volume. Conclusions: Neurological soft signs may be an easy-to-assess marker of region-specific structural brain deficits in adolescents with first-episode psychosis.