Psychiatria pre prax 1/2009

Neuroimaging in psychiatric practice

Introduction of computed tomography into clinical practice led to a revolution in diagnostics. First non-invasive brain visualization gave rise to expectations also in psychiatry. Despite a huge amount of data about the mental disorders provided by structural and functional neuroimaging techniques their benefit for routine psychiatric practice is still limited. Clear guidelines for brain imaging in psychiatry are lacking, except for dementia and emergency medical situation with consciousness disturbances or other neurological symptoms. This article is focused on the imaging techniques that are used and available in psychiatric practice.

Keywords: neuroimaging, CT, MRI, EEG, SPECT, PET