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. 1996 Sep 3;93(18):9985–9990. doi: 10.1073/pnas.93.18.9985

Schizophrenia and cognitive dysmetria: a positron-emission tomography study of dysfunctional prefrontal-thalamic-cerebellar circuitry.

N C Andreasen 1, D S O'Leary 1, T Cizadlo 1, S Arndt 1, K Rezai 1, L L Ponto 1, G L Watkins 1, R D Hichwa 1
PMCID: PMC38542  PMID: 8790444

Abstract

Patients suffering from schizophrenia display subtle cognitive abnormalities that may reflect a difficulty in rapidly coordinating the steps that occur in a variety of mental activities. Working interactively with the prefrontal cortex, the cerebellum may play a role in coordinating both motor and cognitive performance. This positron-emission tomography study suggests the presence of a prefrontal-thalamic-cerebellar network that is activated when normal subjects recall complex narrative material, but is dysfunctional in schizophrenic patients when they perform the same task. These results support a role for the cerebellum in cognitive functions and suggest that patients with schizophrenia may suffer from a "cognitive dysmetria" due to dysfunctional prefrontal-thalamic-cerebellar circuitry.

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Selected References

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