Pituitary volume in teenagers with first-presentation borderline personality disorder

Abstract

This study used magnetic resonance imaging to examine pituitary gland volume (PGV) in teenage patients with a first presentation of borderline personality disorder (BPD). No difference in PGV was observed between healthy controls ( n = 20) and the total BPD cohort ( n = 20). However, within the BPD cohort, those exposed to childhood trauma ( n = 9) tended to have smaller pituitaries (− 18%) than those with no history of childhood trauma ( n = 10). These preliminary findings suggest that exposure to childhood trauma, rather than BPD, per se, might be associated with reduced PGV, possibly reflecting hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis dysfunction.