Rostral anterior cingulate volume predicts treatment response to cognitive-behavioural therapy for p
Rostral anterior cingulate volume predicts treatment response to cognitive-behavioural therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder.
OBJECTIVE: To index the extent to which treatment response in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is predicted by rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) volume. METHOD: We used structural magnetic resonance imaging in a 1.5 T scanner to examine subjects with PTSD (n = 13), traumatized control subjects (n = 13) and nontraumatized control subjects (n = 13). Subjects with PTSD then participated in 8 sessions of cognitive-behavioural therapy, after which we reassessed them for PTSD. RESULTS: According to voxel-based morphometry, treatment responders had larger rACC volume than nonresponders. Further, symptom reduction was associated with larger rACC volume. CONCLUSION: Consistent with evidence for the neural bases of extinction learning, PTSD patients with larger rACC volume may be better able to regulate fear during cognitive-behavioural therapy and thus achieve greater treatment gains.
Bryant RA, Felmingham K, Whitford TJ, Kemp A, Hughes G, Peduto A, Williams LM.
Bryant, Felmingham, Whitford, Kemp, Williams - Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Hospital; Bryant, Felmingham - School of Psychology, University of New South Wales; Hughes, Peduto - Department of Radiology, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, Australia.