Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Psychol Med. 2013 Mar;43(3):645-53. doi: 10.1017/S0033291712001328. Epub 2012 Jun 15.
Decreased cortical thickness in frontal and temporal regions has been observed in individuals suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), compared to healthy controls and trauma-exposed participants without PTSD. In addition, individual differences, both functional and structural, in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) have been shown to predict symptom severity reduction. Although there is some evidence suggesting that activity in this region changes as a function of recovery, it remains unknown whether there are any structural correlates of recovery from PTSD.
Thirty participants suffering from moderate to severe PTSD underwent a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan following an initial clinical assessment. A second assessment took place 6-9 months later. In addition, a subgroup of 25 participants completed a second MRI scan at that time. PTSD symptom severity changes over time were regressed against vertex-based cortical thickness.
We found that cortical thickness in the right subgenual ACC (sgACC) predicted symptom improvement. Moreover, cortical thickness within this region of the ACC, measured 6-9 months later (n = 25), was also correlated with the same measure of symptom improvement. By contrast, no relationship was found between change in cortical thickness in this area and current PTSD symptom levels or degree of recovery.
Our results suggest that sgACC thickness may be a stable marker of recovery potential in PTSD.
与健康对照组和无创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）的创伤暴露参与者相比，患有 PTSD 的个体在前额和颞叶区域的皮质厚度降低。此外，前扣带皮层（ACC）的功能和结构个体差异已被证明可以预测症状严重程度的降低。尽管有一些证据表明该区域的活动随着恢复而变化，但尚不清楚是否存在 PTSD 恢复的任何结构相关性。
30 名患有中度至重度 PTSD 的参与者在初次临床评估后接受了磁共振成像（MRI）扫描。6-9 个月后进行了第二次评估。此外，25 名参与者的亚组在当时完成了第二次 MRI 扫描。随着时间的推移，PTSD 症状严重程度的变化与基于顶点的皮质厚度回归。
我们发现右侧扣带回亚区（sgACC）的皮质厚度可预测症状改善。此外，6-9 个月后（n = 25）测量的该 ACC 区域内的皮质厚度也与相同的症状改善测量相关。相比之下，该区域的皮质厚度变化与当前 PTSD 症状水平或恢复程度之间没有关系。
我们的结果表明，sgACC 厚度可能是 PTSD 恢复潜力的稳定标志物。
