Abstract: Objective To explore the relativity between the changes of 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopy(¹H-MRS) in hippocampus and prefrontal lobe and syndrome differentiation of major depression.Methods Sixty patients with major depression(MD) were divided into Group A(phlegm-heat syndrome),Group B(blood stasis syndrome),Group C(deficient fire syndrome) and Group D(cold-dampness syndrome),and other 20 normal controls were selected.The neurochemical abnormalities including the ratios of N-acetylaspartate(NAA)/choline(Cho),NAA/creatine(Cr) and Cho/Cr were measured with three-dimension 1H proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy(3D1H-MRS).Results The ratios of Cho/Cr in white matter of the prefrontal lobe were significant higher in MD patients than that in normal controls(P<0.05);the ratios of NAA/Cr in hippocampus were significant higher in MD patients than that in normal controls(P<0.05).Conclusion There might be the relativity between the neurochemical abnormalities in hippocampus and prefrontal lobe and traditional Chinese medicine syndrome differentiation of major depression.

Key words: syndrome differentiation, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, prefrontal lobe, hippocampus, depression