Kovacevic Natasha, Meghdadi Amir, Berka Chris
Advanced Brain Monitoring, Carlsbad, CA, USA.
Clin EEG Neurosci. 2025 Jul;56(4):305-315. doi: 10.1177/15500594241309680. Epub 2025 Jan 7.
Resting-state EEG measures have shown potential in distinguishing individuals with PTSD from healthy controls. ERP components such as N2, P3, and late positive potential have been consistently linked to cognitive abnormalities in PTSD, especially in tasks involving emotional or trauma-related stimuli. However, meta-analyses have reported inconsistent findings. The understanding of biomarkers that can classify the varied symptoms of PTSD remains limited. This study aimed to develop a concise set of electrophysiological biomarkers, using neutral cognitive tasks, that could be applied across psychiatric conditions, and to identify biomarkers associated with the anxiety and depression dimensions of PTSD. Continuous simultaneous recordings of EEG and electrocardiogram (ECG) were obtained in veterans with PTSD (n = 29) and healthy controls (n = 62) during computerized tasks. EEG, ERP, and heart rate measures were evaluated in terms of their ability to discriminate between the groups or correlate with psychological measures. The PTSD cohort exhibited faster alpha oscillations, reduced alpha power, and a flatter power spectrum. Furthermore, stronger reduction in alpha power was associated with higher trait anxiety, while a flatter slope was related to more severe depression symptoms in individuals with PTSD. In ERP tasks of visual memory and sustained attention, the PTSD cohort demonstrated delayed and exaggerated early components, along with attenuated LPP amplitudes. The three tasks revealed distinct and complementary EEG signatures PTSD. Multimodal individualized biomarkers based on EEG, cognitive ERPs, and ECG show promise as objective tools for assessing mood and anxiety disturbances within the PTSD spectrum.
静息态脑电图测量已显示出区分创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）患者与健康对照者的潜力。诸如N2、P3和晚期正电位等事件相关电位成分一直与PTSD中的认知异常有关，尤其是在涉及情绪或创伤相关刺激的任务中。然而，荟萃分析报告的结果并不一致。对于能够对PTSD的各种症状进行分类的生物标志物的理解仍然有限。本研究旨在利用中性认知任务开发一套简洁的电生理生物标志物，这些生物标志物可应用于各种精神疾病，并识别与PTSD的焦虑和抑郁维度相关的生物标志物。在计算机化任务期间，对患有PTSD的退伍军人（n = 29）和健康对照者（n = 62）进行了脑电图和心电图（ECG）的连续同步记录。从区分两组的能力或与心理测量的相关性方面评估脑电图、事件相关电位和心率测量。PTSD队列表现出更快的阿尔法振荡、降低的阿尔法功率和平坦的功率谱。此外，阿尔法功率的更大降低与更高的特质焦虑相关，而更平坦的斜率与PTSD患者更严重的抑郁症状相关。在视觉记忆和持续注意力的事件相关电位任务中，PTSD队列表现出早期成分延迟和夸张，同时晚期正电位振幅减弱。这三项任务揭示了PTSD独特且互补的脑电图特征。基于脑电图、认知事件相关电位和心电图的多模态个体化生物标志物有望成为评估PTSD范围内情绪和焦虑障碍的客观工具。
