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Related Concept Videos

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder01:27

Post-traumatic Stress Disorder

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition that arises following exposure to traumatic events such as natural disasters, forced displacement, or severe accidents. It significantly impairs individuals' ability to cope with daily activities and disrupts their emotional and psychological equilibrium.
Symptoms and Behavioral Manifestations
A spectrum of distressing symptoms characterizes PTSD. Recurrent flashbacks, where individuals involuntarily relive traumatic events, are a...
Traumatic Memory01:20

Traumatic Memory

Emotionally traumatic events often lead to memories that are exceptionally vivid and enduring, sometimes persisting with remarkable clarity throughout an individual's life. A classic example of this phenomenon is a person who survives a car accident. Even years later, they may recall every detail of the event with startling accuracy — the screeching of the tires, the jarring impact, and the acrid smell of burning rubber. Such vividness contrasts sharply with how an individual remembers mundane...

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Investigations on Alterations of Hippocampal Circuit Function Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
10:59

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Published on: November 19, 2012

Altered oscillatory brain dynamics after repeated traumatic stress.

Iris-Tatjana Kolassa1, Christian Wienbruch, Frank Neuner

  • 1Department of Psychology, Clinical & Neuropsychology, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany. Iris.Kolassa@uni-konstanz.de

BMC Psychiatry
|October 19, 2007
PubMed
Summary

Survivors of torture and war with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) exhibit abnormal slow brain waves, particularly in the left temporal lobe and insula. These findings suggest altered neural circuitry in PTSD.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Psychiatry
  • Brain Imaging

Background:

  • Repeated trauma, such as war and torture, causes cerebral changes detectable in cortical dynamics.
  • Abnormal slow waves in specific brain regions during rest are linked to neural circuitry damage in neurological and mental health disorders.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate abnormal slow wave generation in the brains of individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) resulting from torture and war.
  • To compare the cortical dynamics of PTSD survivors with a control group.

Main Methods:

  • Magnetoencephalography (MEG)-based source imaging was employed.
  • The study involved 97 survivors of torture and war diagnosed with PTSD and 97 matched controls.
  • Abnormal distributions of slow wave generators were mapped.

Main Results:

  • PTSD patients demonstrated increased focal slow wave production (1-4 Hz), predominantly in left temporal regions, with peak activity near the insula.
  • Distinct slow wave activity patterns were observed in right frontal areas of PTSD patients compared to controls.

Conclusions:

  • The insula's role in multimodal convergence may be crucial for understanding PTSD pathophysiology, potentially explaining posttraumatic alexithymia.
  • Dysfunctional prefrontal cortex (PFC) activity in right frontal areas might contribute to impaired fear extinction and reduced amygdala inhibition in PTSD.