MRI Detects Bipolar Disorder
December 1, 2004
(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Patients with bipolar disorder may have a new option to help diagnose their condition, according to a study from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.
Researchers say magnetic resonance spectroscopy -- a technology commonly used to detect cancers and osteoporosis -- may be the most reliable diagnostic test for bipolar disorder. This technique is the same as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Currently, doctors base their diagnosis on symptoms and family history. Under this system, there are cases that often go undiagnosed for years.
John D. Port, M.D., Ph.D., co-author of the study, says, "Bipolar disorder is challenging to diagnose because individuals can cover up the symptoms of the illness or may recognize only their depression, not the manic phase of the disorder."
Researchers studied 21 bipolar patients between ages 18 and 54 who were not on any medications. Researchers scanned up to 70 regions of the patients' brains with MR spectroscopy. The scans enabled researchers to collect statistical information on five metabolites, which are chemical substances found in brain tissues.
Results show metabolite levels in bipolar patients differed considerably from those without the mental disease in the areas controlling behavior, movement, vision and sensory information.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about 2.3 million Americans have bipolar disorder.
SOURCE: Radiological Society of North America's annual meeting in Chicago, Nov. 28-Dec. 3, 2004
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