Hemodynamic changes in anxious depression adolescents during a verbal fluency task: A fNIRS study

Compared to depression, adolescents with anxious depression more severe impairments across multiple domains. This study illustrates differences in brain activity patterns among depressed adolescents with varying levels of anxiety.

A total of 196 adolescents with depression were recruited, including 67 in the low anxious depression group (LAD), 87 in the moderate anxious depression group (MAD), and 42 in the high anxious depression group (HAD). We utilized functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to monitor oxyhemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) changes in participants' brains while they performed the verbal fluency task (VFT).

High anxious depression adolescents exhibited significantly lower Oxy-Hb activation in Brodmann Areas 10 (BA 10) (F = 7.073, pFDR = 0.001) and 46 (BA 46) (F = 11.668, pFDR < 0.001) compared to those with low anxious depression. During the VFT, the HAM-A score was negatively correlated with Oxy-Hb levels in BA 10 (r = -0.234, pFDR = 0.006) and BA 46 (r = -0.320, pFDR < 0.001). In the initiation phase, the activation level of the LAD in BA 10 was higher than that of the HAD (pFDR < 0.020), and in BA 46, it was higher than both the HAD (pFDR < 0.001) and MAD (pFDR = 0.015). In the maintenance phase, LAD activation in BA 10 was higher than HAD (pFDR = 0.019) and MAD (pFDR = 0.001), while BA 46 activation was higher than HAD (pFDR = 0.027).

The study revealed that adolescents with high anxious depression had significantly lower Oxy-Hb levels in the PFC (specifically BA 10 and BA 46) compared to those with low anxious depression, providing neurophysiological evidence for the negative impact of anxiety on attention control. The results may aid in distinguish adolescents with varying anxiety levels and offer potential personalized intervention targets for non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS).