Raphe Nuclei Echogenicity and Diameter of Third Ventricle in Schizophrenia Measured by Transcranial Sonography.

Introduction: Serotonergic system hyperactivity at 5-HT2A receptors on glutamate neurons in the cerebral cortex is one of the pathways that is theoretically linked to psychosis. In addition to neurotransmitter dysfunction, volumetric studies have revealed the loss of cortical gray matter and ventricular enlargement in patients with schizophrenia, although there is no case-control research on patients with schizophrenia to evaluate echogenicity of raphe nuclei (RN) or diameter of the third ventricle (DTV). To address these issues, the present study assessed midbrain RN, as the main source of brain serotonin, and DTV, as an index of atrophy, by transcranial sonography (TCS) in a group of patients with schizophrenia.

Transcranial sonography in carriers of Gaucher disease.

Glucocerebrosidase (GBA) mutation is the most common genetic risk factor in Parkinson's disease (PD). Transcranial sonography (TCS) shows increased substantia nigra (SN) echogenicity in both idiopathic and genetic forms of PD. The goal of this study was to compare maximal area of SN hyperechogenicity (aSNmax) and diameter of third ventricle (DTV) between GBA mutation carriers and healthy controls.

Raphe nuclei echogenicity changes in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Dysregulation of serotonin system is hypothesized to play the main role in the etiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Transcranial sonography (TCS) is a helpful noninvasive and low-cost tool for the assessment of subcortical brain architectures, mainly basal nuclei, cerebellar central structures, and midbrain. In this study, an ultrasound assessment was performed for a sample of the patients with OCD and healthy control group to evaluate echogenicity of midbrain raphe nuclei (RN).