Microstructural brain abnormalities and symptom dimensions in child and adolescent patients with obsessive-compulsive...

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a complex neuropsychiatric condition.
• Understanding the underlying neurobiology of OCD is crucial for effective treatment.
• White matter (WM) microstructure alterations are increasingly implicated in OCD pathogenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate white matter (WM) microstructure abnormalities in child and adolescent patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI).
• To explore whether these WM abnormalities differ based on specific OCD symptom dimensions.

Main Methods:

• Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI) was performed on 63 child and adolescent OCD patients (aged 11-18) and 37 healthy controls.
• Participants were matched for gender, age, and estimated intelligence quotient.
• Psychopathology scales were used to assess symptom dimensions.

Main Results:

• OCD patients exhibited decreased fractional anisotropy (FA) in the anterior corpus callosum (CC) compared to controls.
• Increased mean diffusivity (MD), axial diffusivity (AD), and radial diffusivity (RD) were observed in OCD patients across multiple WM regions, including the CC, cingulate, frontal and occipital lobes, basal ganglia, cerebellum, and pons.
• Specific WM abnormalities correlated with OCD symptom dimensions: harm/checking dimension associated with decreased FA in the CC, anterior cingulate gyrus, and caudate nucleus; contamination/washing dimension linked to decreased FA in the midbrain, lentiform nucleus, insula, and thalamus, and increased diffusivity in the cerebellum and pons.

Conclusions:

• The study findings suggest that white matter (WM) abnormalities at the microstructural level play a role in the pathogenesis of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
• These WM abnormalities appear to vary depending on the specific symptom dimensions of OCD.
• This heterogeneity in WM alterations underscores the clinical diversity of OCD.