Question

Why do most researchers consider schizophrenia a brain disorder? What evidence suggests that schizophrenia could begin in the womb?

Answer 1

Although the precise cause of schizophrenia remains unknown, there is mounting evidence from brain scans and microscopic tissue studies that schizophrenia involves a number of brain abnormalities (Gluck, 2012). The most common structural abnormality among patients with schizophrenia involves the enlargement of the lateral brain ventricles. Studies also report observing up to 25 percent loss of gray matter in certain areas of the schizophrenic brain. Abnormal activity of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and glutamate is also hypothesized to produce symptoms of the disorder.

A comprehensive study by King, St-Hilaire and Heidkamp (2010).suggests that exposure to certain external and internal risk factors during the prenatal stage of development can lead to the development of schizophrenia during later years. These factors include maternal diabetes, low birth weight, older paternal age, winter birth, and prenatal maternal stress, among others. This suggests that schizophrenia may in fact begin in the womb.

References:

Gluck, S. (2012). Schizophrenia Brain: Impact of Schizophrenia on the Brain. Retrieved from https://www.healthyplace.com/thought-disorders/schizophrenia-effects/schizophrenia-brain-impact-of-schizophrenia-on-the-brain

King, S., St-Hilaire, A., & Heidkamp, D. (2010). Prenatal Factors in Schizophrenia. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 19(4), 209-213. doi:10.1177/0963721410378360