fmri

Imaging IDs Brain Activity Related to Dissociative Symptoms

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Trauma-related dissociation consists of several subtypes, with unique brain signatures depending on the type of dissociative disorders, new research suggests. Results from a neuroimaging study showed that different dissociative symptoms were linked to hyperconnectivity within several key regions of the brain, including the central executive, default, and salience networks, and decreased connectivity of the central … Read more

Brain Imaging Validates Cognitive Problems After Lyme Disease

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New imaging data show distinctive brain changes that appear to explain memory and cognitive problems following Lyme disease. Using fMRI and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) techniques, investigators found changes in white matter and other brain tissues in patients with posttreatment Lyme disease (PTLD) in comparison with healthy control persons who did not have a history … Read more

Sleep Loss Linked to Reduced Generosity, Even at a Neuronal Level

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Sleep loss, ranging from the individual level of missing a night’s sleep to a societal level of losing an hour’s sleep because of Daylight Saving Time, is associated with reduced altruism or an inclination to help others, new research suggests. These effects were observed even at the neurologic level on brain MRIs, investigators report. “In … Read more

Subtle Visual Dysfunctions Often Precede Early-Stage Psychosis

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Subtle subjective visual dysfunctions (VisDys) are common and are associated with poorer outcomes of patients with schizophrenia and recent-onset psychosis or who are at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis, new research suggests. A multinational group of investigators found that said Vis-more often by patients with recent onset psychosis and CHR than by those with … Read more

New Insight Into How Brain Stimulation Eases Major Depression

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For the first time, researchers understand what happens to the brain when patients with treatment-resistant depression receive repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), they showed that rTMS induces widespread alterations in functional connectivity in brain regions involved in emotion and motor control. ‘How does rTMS work?’ is one of the … Read more

Psilocybin ‘Rewires’ the Brain to Alleviate Depression

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New research points to a general mechanism that may explain how psychedelics act on the brain to alleviate depression and potentially other psychiatric conditions marked by fixed patterns of thinking, including rumination and excessive self-focus. Led by investigators from the University of California San Francisco and Imperial College London’s Center for Psychedelic Research, the findings … Read more