Etiology of Schizophrenia

Flashcards for reviewing key concepts related to the etiology of schizophrenia, particularly focusing on neurodevelopmental disruptions.

What term did Kraepelin use in 1887 to describe schizophrenia?

Dementia Praecox.

What imaging technology did Allan McLeod Cormack and Godfrey Newbold Hounsfield develop in the early 1970s?

Computerized axial tomography (CT scanning).

Which Nobel Prize was awarded for the development of MRI techniques?

The Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 2003.

What does functional MRI (fMRI) measure?

Brain activity by detecting changes associated with blood flow.

What is the significance of lateral ventricle size in early CT studies of schizophrenia?

It may suggest loss of brain tissue.

What does cortical thickness reflect in relation to schizophrenia?

It reflects neuronal and synaptic density and can indicate microstructural simplification.

What hypothesis suggests that schizophrenia may stem from structural defects formed long before diagnosis?

The Neurodevelopmental Hypothesis.

During what developmental stage do neurons begin making connections and forming synapses?

Early childhood.

What happens to synapse density after the newborn stage up to adulthood?

Synapse density increases and then ultimately declines.

What is the Dysconnectivity Hypothesis of schizophrenia?

It suggests excessive pruning of synapses and abnormal inhibitory systems leads to ineffective coordination across brain regions.