Brain glucose and ketone metabolism in first-episode psychosis: Neuroimaging and brain metabolism before and after antipsychotic treatment: The protocol for the CAST-ATP study

This paper is a study protocol for CAST-ATP, which aims to evaluate the effect of a first-episode psychosis diagnosis, and of 4 to 6 weeks of antipsychotic treatment, on brain energy metabolism measured by PET scans of ketone and glucose uptake. Participants will also undergo MRI and measures of psychopathology and peripheral metabolic, inflammatory and hormonal markers. The stated hypotheses are that glucose metabolism will be impaired in antipsychotic-naive patients compared with healthy controls and worsened by antipsychotics, while brain ketone metabolism is predicted not to be significantly influenced by either.