Abnormal Activation and Connection in Middle Frontal Gyrus: A Potential Imaging Feature for Facial Synkinesis
Haonan Guan1, Luyao Wang2, Fan Dong2
1Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200011, China, shsmu.edu.cn.
Depression and Anxiety
|April 28, 2026
Summary
Facial synkinesis patients with depression show reduced middle frontal gyrus (MFG) activation and altered functional connectivity. These brain changes may indicate a higher risk for depressive symptoms in facial synkinesis.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Medical Imaging
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Facial synkinesis (FS) patients with comorbid depression often experience worsened symptoms and poorer recovery.
- Understanding the neuroimaging correlates of depressive symptoms in FS is crucial for developing effective rehabilitation strategies.
- Abnormalities in the middle frontal gyrus (MFG) are known in depression, but their role in FS with depression is unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between brain activation, functional connectivity, and depressive symptoms in patients with facial synkinesis.
- To explore whether MFG activity and connectivity patterns correlate with depression severity in FS patients.
Main Methods:
- Utilized task-based and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) in 32 FS patients and 20 normal controls (NCs).
- Assessed depression using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-V) and measured symptom severity with the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II).
- Analyzed brain activation during motor tasks and seed-based functional connectivity (FC) of the MFG, correlating findings with clinical scores.
Main Results:
- Reduced activation was observed in the sensorimotor cortex and MFG during affected side movements in FS patients.
- Increased seed-based FC between the MFG and emotion-related brain areas was found in FS patients, suggesting impaired emotional networks.
- MFG activation negatively correlated with BDI-II scores, while MFG FC positively correlated with BDI-II scores.
Conclusions:
- MFG hypoactivation and altered connectivity are associated with depressive symptoms in facial synkinesis patients.
- These neuroimaging findings may serve as potential biomarkers for increased risk of depression in FS.
- Further research is warranted to validate these findings and their clinical implications for FS management.
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