Segmented volumes of cerebrum and cerebellum in first episode schizophrenia with auditory hallucinations.

The volumes of cerebral and cerebellar regions were measured in first episode schizophrenic patients with (n = 17) and without (n = 8) auditory hallucinations. Magnetic resonance images of cerebral and cerebellar regions were segmented into gray and white fractions using an algorithm for semiautomated fuzzy tissue segmentation. They were defined by using the semiautomated Talairach atlas-based parcellation method. Patients with auditory hallucinations showed larger temporal white matter, frontal gray matter, and temporal gray matter volumes than patients without auditory hallucinations. These findings suggest that auditory hallucinations in schizophrenic patients may be associated with neuropathological abnormalities in frontal and temporal brain regions.