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Hippocampal neuron number in schizophrenia. A stereological study
Heckers S, Heinsen H, Geiger B, Beckmann H.. Archives of general psychiatry, 1991-11-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Neuropathologic and neuroradiologic studies have reported hippocampal abnormalities in schizophrenics. We estimated the total number of neurons in the hippocampus of schizophrenics and controls to elucidate the neuronal basis of such changes. Thirteen brains of schizophrenics and 13 control brains closely matched for sex and age were studied. A new stereological method was applied to serial coronal sections through the whole hippocampus. Total hippocampal volume was reduced in the schizophrenic sample, more pronounced on the left side, but mean differences were not significant. The volumes of the pyramidal cell layer in the four subdivisions subiculum and cornu Ammonis sectors CA 1, CA 2/3, and CA 4 were almost identical in both groups. Schizophrenics did not differ from controls with regard to nerve cell density in any of the four subdivisions. The estimates of the total number of neurons in the hippocampal subdivisions were not different between schizophrenics and controls. The data do not support the hypothesis that hippocampal abnormalities are caused by neuronal cell loss. However, they are consistent with the suggestion that white matter changes in the hippocampus may play a role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia.
Key findings
- Total hippocampal volume was reduced in the schizophrenic sample, more pronounced on the left side, but mean differences were not significant.
- However, they are consistent with the suggestion that white matter changes in the hippocampus may play a role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 36/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 21 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 36 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Archives of general psychiatry) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1991 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 1747014) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 21 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 21 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 36 out of 100. |
| Total | 36 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
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APA 7th
Heckers, S., Heinsen, H., Geiger, B., & Beckmann, H. (1991). Hippocampal neuron number in schizophrenia. A stereological study. Archives of general psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.1991.01810350042006
Vancouver
Heckers S, Heinsen H, Geiger B, Beckmann H. Hippocampal neuron number in schizophrenia. A stereological study. Archives of general psychiatry. 1991. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1991.01810350042006. PMID: 1747014.
BibTeX
@article{heckers1991-1747014,
author = {Heckers, S. and Heinsen, H. and Geiger, B. and Beckmann, H.},
title = {{Hippocampal neuron number in schizophrenia. A stereological study}},
journal = {Archives of general psychiatry},
year = {1991},
doi = {10.1001/archpsyc.1991.01810350042006},
pmid = {1747014},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/archpsyc.1991.01810350042006}
}
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