A differential role for the hippocampus and amygdala in neuropsychiatric disorders
- Professor Ennapadam S Krishnamoorthy, The Institute of Neurological Sciences, VHS Hospital, Taramani, Chennai- 600113, India; esk_66{at}yahoo.co.uk
The paper by Briellmann and colleagues1 in this issue of J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry brings into focus an evolving trend in the literature with respect to mesial temporal structure volumes and psychopathology (see page 1226). In this study of 34 patients with temporal lobe epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis, the authors found that a lifetime history of major depression was present in almost half of all subjects and was associated with longer duration of epilepsy and lower frequency of antecedent events. While ipsilateral hippocampal sclerosis and bilateral amygdala atrophy were seen in both depressed and non-depressed groups, there was relative preservation of the contralateral amygdala …
