Attention training modulates resting-state neurophysiological abnormalities in posttraumatic stress disorder
Amy Badura-Brack1, Timothy J McDermott2, Katherine M Becker3
1Department of Psychology, Creighton University, 2500 California Plaza, Omaha, NE 68178, USA.
Psychiatry Research. Neuroimaging
|November 28, 2017
Summary
Computerized attention control treatment (ACT) and attention bias modification treatment (ABMT) show benefits for PTSD. ACT impacts visual pathways, while ABMT affects threat processing regions, normalizing neural activity in veterans.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Psychology
Background:
- Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition often treated with therapies aimed at modifying cognitive processes.
- Computerized attention control treatment (ACT) and attention bias modification treatment (ABMT) are emerging as potential interventions for PTSD.
- The underlying neural mechanisms of these attention-based treatments remain largely unexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the differential neurophysiological effects of ACT and ABMT in veterans with PTSD.
- To identify how these attention training interventions modulate brain activity associated with PTSD.
- To correlate neural changes with clinical symptom improvement.
Main Methods:
- A randomized double-blinded clinical trial involving 46 combat veterans with PTSD.
- Comparison of ACT versus ABMT interventions.
- Resting-state magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings before and after training in 32 participants.
- Advanced Bayesian reconstruction and statistical parametric mapping for MEG data analysis.
Main Results:
- Attention control treatment (ACT) significantly modulated occipital activity, associated with visual pathways.
- Attention bias modification treatment (ABMT) significantly modulated medial temporal activity, linked to threat processing.
- Both treatments led to a significant decrease in PTSD symptoms from pre- to post-test.
- Observed neural changes suggest a normalization of aberrant brain activity in veterans with PTSD.
Conclusions:
- ACT and ABMT demonstrate distinct neurophysiological effects in veterans with PTSD.
- ACT primarily influences visual processing regions, while ABMT targets threat-related neural circuits.
- These findings provide initial neurophysiological evidence supporting the efficacy of both ACT and ABMT in treating PTSD by normalizing aberrant neural activity.
