Intranetwork and internetwork functional connectivity alterations in post-traumatic stress disorder.

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Psychiatry
• Brain Network Analysis

Background:

• Previous neuroimaging studies have identified functional alterations in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
• However, the specific abnormalities in the functional architecture of resting-state networks in PTSD remain underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate resting-state intranetwork and internetwork functional connectivity differences in PTSD patients compared to healthy controls (HCs).
• To elucidate the brain network-level functional architecture abnormalities associated with PTSD.

Main Methods:

• Utilized independent component analysis (ICA) for analyzing resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data.
• Compared functional connectivity patterns between 20 individuals diagnosed with PTSD and 20 matched HCs.

Main Results:

• PTSD patients exhibited significantly decreased intranetwork connectivity within the anterior default mode network, posterior default mode network (pDMN), salience network (SN), sensory-motor network, and auditory network compared to HCs.
• Increased internetwork connectivity was observed between the SN and pDMN in PTSD patients.

Conclusions:

• The findings indicate abnormal functional connectivity at the brain network level in individuals with PTSD.
• Enhanced SN-pDMN internetwork connectivity may be associated with PTSD symptoms such as hyperarousal and heightened anxiety.
• A limitation is the lack of trauma-exposed HCs, preventing definitive conclusions on whether observed alterations are PTSD-specific or due to trauma exposure.