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Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Exploring the Neural Correlates of Cognitive Reappraisal in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Using Task-based Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Published on: March 14, 2025
Does cognitive behavioral therapy change the brain? A systematic review of neuroimaging in anxiety disorders
Patricia Ribeiro Porto1, Leticia Oliveira, Jair Mari
1Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. portopat@gmail.com
Abstract:
This systematic review aims to investigate neurobiological changes related to cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) in anxiety disorders detected through neuroimaging techniques and to identify predictors of response to treatment. Cognitive-behavioral therapy modified the neural circuits involved in the regulation of negative emotions and fear extinction in judged treatment responders. The only study on predictors of response to treatment was regarding obsessive-compulsive disorder and showed higher pretreatment regional metabolic activity in the left orbitofrontal cortex associated with a better response to behavioral therapy. Despite methodological limitations, neuroimaging studies revealed that CBT was able to change dysfunctions of the nervous system.
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