Comporting with postmortem findings, computed tomography (CT) and MRI studies reveal brain volume deficits specific to the prefrontal cortex and cerebellum (for reviews Oscar-Berman and Marinkovic, 2007; Chanraud et al., 2010a) even in chronic alcohol dependent subjects without obvious complications from nutritional deficiencies (e.g., thiamine deficiency) or hepatic disorders (Hayakawa and Kumagai, 1992; Wang et al., 1993; Shear et al., 1994; Chanraud et al., 2007). MR volumetric studies have also revealed thalamic (but see, Shear et al., 1992; Sullivan, 2003; Benegal et al., 2007; Cardenas et al., 2007; Chanraud et al., 2007) and pontine (Sullivan et al., 2010a) volume deficits in alcoholics. The pons is composed of a complex arrangement of nuclei (Schmahmann and Pandya, 1989) and extensive white matter fiber systems. The pons can be affected by central pontine myelinolysis (CPM), a complication associated with alcoholism (Victor, 1987). CPM, a relatively rare and serious condition that can result in quadriplegia and curtailed longevity (Adams et al., 1959), is neuroradiologically defined on T2- weighted images as a hyperintense, triangular-shaped lesion in the middle of the pons (Kleinschmidt-DeMasters et al., 1997).
