Brain activity in patients with OCD during visual working memory task: an fMRI study

2014 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 25861017
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Psychiatric science
• Research Institution: Kyushu University
• Principal Investigator: MURAYAMA KEITARO 九州大学, 医学(系)研究科(研究院), その他 (20645981)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Keywords: 強迫症 / ワーキングメモリ / functional MRI

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We compared the differences in brain activation using fMRI and N-back task performance between 13 patients and 17 normal controls and compared that in OCD patients before and after treatment. The correct answer rates of N-back task were no differences between OCD patients at the before treatment and normal controls (p=0.738). There, meanwhile, was significant difference between OCD patients at the before and after treatment (p=0.018). The patients showed greater activation in the left middle and superior frontal gyrus, right precuneus, bilateral inferior parietal lobe than the normal controls. The patients after the treatment showed lower activation than the patients before the treatment in the left inferior and superior parietal lobe, right precuneus, left middle frontal gyrus. These findings support that front-parietal region might compensate for the dysfunction of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex which relate to central executive of working memory.

Free Research Field

医歯薬学