Cannabis use and brain structural alterations in first episode schizophrenia — A region of interest, voxel based morphometric study

Structural alterations of the brain in schizophrenia have been associated with genetic and environmental factors. Among the environmental factors, cannabis use has been associated with increased risk for patients with schizophrenia, but the effect of cannabis on their brain structure is unclear. We examined gray matter alterations in first episode schizophrenia patients (FES) with cannabis use (FES + C; n = 15) compared to FES without cannabis use (FES − C; n = 24) and 42 healthy controls who did not use cannabis. We conducted a voxel based morphometric analysis of a priori determined regions of interest consisting of the CB1 receptor rich brain regions. We observed a decrease in gray matter density in the right posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) in FES + C when compared with FES − C. The results suggest that cannabis use may be associated with altered brain structure, in particular regions rich in CB1 receptors. These findings need to be confirmed by larger, prospective studies.