Caudate gray matter volumes and risk of relapse in Type A alcohol-dependent patients: A 7-year MRI follow-up study

Background: Whether alteration in regional brain volumes can be detected in Type A alcoholics both at baseline and after a long follow-up remains to be confirmed. Therefore, we examined volume alterations at baseline, and longitudinal changes in a small follow-up subsample. Methods In total of 26 patients and 24 healthy controls were assessed at baseline using magnetic resonance imaging and voxel-based morphometry, among which 17 patients and 6 controls were re-evaluated 7 years later. At baseline, regional cerebral volumes of patients were compared to controls. At follow-up, three groups were compared: abstainers ( n = 11, more than 2 years of abstinence), relapsers ( n = 6,