Brain Imaging of Childhood Onset Psychiatric Disorders, Endocrine Disorders and Healthy Volunteers

Description

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) unlike X-rays and CT-scans does not use radiation to create a picture. MRI use as the name implies, magnetism to create pictures with excellent anatomical resolution. Functional MRIs are diagnostic tests that allow doctors to not only view anatomy, but physiology and function. It is for these reasons that MRIs are excellent methods for studying the brain. In this study, researchers will use MRI to assess brain anatomy and function in X and Y chromosome variation, healthy volunteers, and patients with a variety of childhood onset psychiatric disorders. The disorders include attention deficit disorder, autism, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, childhood-onset schizophrenia, dyslexia, obsessive compulsive disorder, Sydenham's chorea, and Tourette's syndrome. Results of the MRIs showing the anatomy of the brain and brain function will be compared across age, sex (gender), and diagnostic groups. Correlations between brain and behavioral measures will be examined for normal and clinical populations.

Conditions

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Schizophrenia, Attention Deficit Disorder With Hyperactivity

Study Overview

Study Details

Study overview

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) unlike X-rays and CT-scans does not use radiation to create a picture. MRI use as the name implies, magnetism to create pictures with excellent anatomical resolution. Functional MRIs are diagnostic tests that allow doctors to not only view anatomy, but physiology and function. It is for these reasons that MRIs are excellent methods for studying the brain. In this study, researchers will use MRI to assess brain anatomy and function in X and Y chromosome variation, healthy volunteers, and patients with a variety of childhood onset psychiatric disorders. The disorders include attention deficit disorder, autism, congenital adrenal hyperplasia, childhood-onset schizophrenia, dyslexia, obsessive compulsive disorder, Sydenham's chorea, and Tourette's syndrome. Results of the MRIs showing the anatomy of the brain and brain function will be compared across age, sex (gender), and diagnostic groups. Correlations between brain and behavioral measures will be examined for normal and clinical populations.

Brain Imaging of Childhood Onset Psychiatric Disorders, Endocrine Disorders and Healthy Volunteers

Brain Imaging of Childhood Onset Psychiatric Disorders, Endocrine Disorders and Healthy Volunteers

Condition
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Intervention / Treatment

-

Contacts and Locations

Bethesda

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

For general information about clinical research, read Learn About Studies.

Eligibility Criteria

  • * DSM-IV (or other approved) criteria for one of the following clinical diagnoses: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Childhood Onset Schizophrenia, Turner Syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Asperger Syndrome, High Functioning Autism, Pervasive Development Disorder
  • * ICD-10 criteria for Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, Cushings Syndrome, Kallmann Syndrome, Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome.
  • * ADHD
  • * Chromosomal aneuploidies including Down s Syndrome and Sex chromosome aneuploidy as determined by karyotype (including XXX, XXXX, XXXXX, XXY, XXYY, XXXY, XXXXY, XYY, and XO).
  • * Confirmed chromosomal diagnosis of Down syndrome.
  • * Age at entry into the study is 30 years or under. This upper age limit at study entry is being implemented for the Down syndrome group for several reasons. First, much of the research using magnetic resonance imaging with this population is focused on (older) adult populations and in particular the transition to early onset Alzheimer s disease. Because most (if not all) individuals with Down syndrome demonstrate some brain pathology consistent with Alzheimer s disease by age 30 (e.g., plaques and tangles; Mann \& Esiri, 1989), we would like to enroll participants who are 30 years of age and under. Second, studying children and young adults with Down syndrome fills a significant gap in the literature, as there are very few structural magnetic resonance imaging studies of children and young adults with Down syndrome reported in the literature to date, and the majority of these studies are characterized by small samples of convenience (i.e., clinic populations). Thus, there is still a need to describe the developmental course of this disorder from early childhood to young adulthood. Such developmental research may help shed light on the causes of intellectual disability in Down syndrome and also identify individuals with the syndrome who are most at risk for experiencing the cognitive decline that is reported in the literature for some individuals after the age of 30 (Oliver et al., 1998).
  • * Over 3 years of age with no upper limit for age at time of enrollment.
  • * Parents must have the ability to understand and provide informed consent to the study.
  • * Presence of severe psychiatric disorder (as diagnosed prior to participant study enrollment) in the participant. For these purposes, exclusionary severe psychiatric disorder includes schizophrenia and bipolar affective disorder.
  • * Presence or history of medical conditions known to affect cerebral anatomy.
  • * Dental braces.
  • * Contraindications for MRI scanning according to the NMR Center MRI Safety Screening Questionnaire and guidelines.
  • * For females who have reached menarche: Pregnancy or inability or unwillingness to undergo pregnancy testing.
  • * Dental braces.
  • * Contraindications for MRI scanning according to the NMR Center MRI Safety Screening Questionnaire and guidelines.
  • * For females who have reached menarche: Pregnancy or inability or unwillingness to undergo pregnancy testing.
  • * Evidence of another medical condition or traumatic event known to affect cerebral anatomy.
  • * A known genetic disorder (other than the condition under investigation) that would be expected to significantly impact findings from cognitive testing and/or neuroimaging.

Ages Eligible for Study

3 Years to 120 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Collaborators and Investigators

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH),

Armin Raznahan, M.D., PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

Study Record Dates

N/A