Symposium in fMRI and NIRS Neurofeedback - fMRI neurofeedback in PTSD: frontal control networks and enhancement of interference processing and cognitive reappraisal

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Symposium in fMRI and NIRS Neurofeedback - fMRI neurofeedback in PTSD: frontal control networks and enhancement of interference processing and cognitive reappraisal Klaus Mathiak1* 1 RWTH Aachen University, Dept. Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Germany Deficits in self and emotion regulation are prominent features of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Cognitive reappraisal is an effective strategy for emotion regulation and frequently used in cognitive-behavioral treatment. However, PTSD patients often have difficulties reappraising negative stimuli. The lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) supports emotion regulation by modulating amygdala activity. In PTSD patients, LPFC responses to emotional stimuli are reduced, along with elevated amygdala responses. Neurofeedback based on real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging (rt-fMRI) enhances cognitive reappraisal and the regulation of amygdala involvement. In the present study, neurofeedback on left LPFC enhanced emotion regulation in PTSD patients. Two cohorts of ten patients with PTSD and 10 healthy controls each trained cognitive control of interference processing or reappraisal of images with negative valence, respectively. For cognitive interference the ACC was trained. For cognitive reappraisal, participants received feedback on their LPFC activity. A cross-over design allowed for comparison between cognitive reappraisal with and without enhancement by neurofeedback. Subjects learned control. In particular, the patients involved fronto-polar structures during ACC regulation more than controls. All subjects activated LPFC during cognitive reappraisal. In particular in the patients, the LPFC activation was stronger under neurofeedback. Results from follow-up catamnesis confirmed good acceptance of the training method. The current study provides first evidence that neurofeedback enhances common psychotherapeutic strategies to improve cognitive and affective regulation in patients with PTSD. Acknowledgements German Research Foundation (DFG; MA 2631/6-1) Federal Ministry of Education and Research (APIC and PING: 01EE1405B, 01EE1405C) Keywords: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), fMRI BOLD, Amygdala, cognitive reappraisal, interference Conference: SAN2016 Meeting, Corfu, Greece, 6 Oct - 9 Oct, 2016. Presentation Type: Oral Presentation in SAN 2016 Conference Topic: Symposium in fMRI and NIRS Neurofeedback Citation: Mathiak K (2016). Symposium in fMRI and NIRS Neurofeedback - fMRI neurofeedback in PTSD: frontal control networks and enhancement of interference processing and cognitive reappraisal. Conference Abstract: SAN2016 Meeting. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2016.220.00058 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 29 Jul 2016; Published Online: 01 Aug 2016. * Correspondence: Prof. Klaus Mathiak, RWTH Aachen University, Dept. Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Aachen, 52074, Germany, kmathiak@ukaachen.de Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Klaus Mathiak Google Klaus Mathiak Google Scholar Klaus Mathiak PubMed Klaus Mathiak Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.