Dataset Information

Attention Network Dysfunction in Bulimia Nervosa - An fMRI Study.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE:Recent evidence has suggested an increased rate of comorbid ADHD and subclinical attentional impairments in bulimia nervosa (BN) patients. However, little is known regarding the underlying neural mechanisms of attentional functions in BN. METHOD:Twenty BN patients and twenty age- and weight-matched healthy controls (HC) were investigated using a modified version of the Attention Network Task (ANT) in an fMRI study. This design enabled an investigation of the neural mechanisms associated with the three attention networks involved in alerting, reorienting and executive attention. RESULTS:The BN patients showed hyperactivation in parieto-occipital regions and reduced deactivation of default-mode-network (DMN) areas during alerting compared with HCs. Posterior cingulate activation during alerting correlated with the severity of eating-disorder symptoms within the patient group. Conversely, BN patients showed hypoactivation during reorienting and executive attention in anterior cingulate regions, the temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) and parahippocampus compared with HCs, which was negatively associated with global ADHD symptoms and impulsivity, respectively. DISCUSSION:Our findings demonstrate altered brain mechanisms in BN associated with all three attentional networks. Failure to deactivate the DMN and increased parieto-occipital activation required for alerting might be associated with a constant preoccupation with food or body image-related thoughts. Hypoactivation of executive control networks and TPJ might increase the likelihood of inattentive and impulsive behaviors and poor emotion regulation. Thus, dysfunction in the attentional network in BN goes beyond an altered executive attentional domain and needs to be considered in the diagnosis and treatment of BN.

SUBMITTER: Seitz J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5015972 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Attention Network Dysfunction in Bulimia Nervosa - An fMRI Study.

Seitz Jochen J Hueck Manuel M Dahmen Brigitte B Schulte-Rüther Martin M Legenbauer Tanja T Herpertz-Dahlmann Beate B Konrad Kerstin K

PloS one 20160908 9

<h4>Objective</h4>Recent evidence has suggested an increased rate of comorbid ADHD and subclinical attentional impairments in bulimia nervosa (BN) patients. However, little is known regarding the underlying neural mechanisms of attentional functions in BN.<h4>Method</h4>Twenty BN patients and twenty age- and weight-matched healthy controls (HC) were investigated using a modified version of the Attention Network Task (ANT) in an fMRI study. This design enabled an investigation of the neural mecha ...[more]

PMID: 27607439

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Project description:ObjectiveThe authors examined functional activity in the frontostriatal systems that mediate self-regulatory capacities and conflict resolution in adolescents with bulimia nervosa.MethodFunctional magnetic resonance imaging was used to compare blood-oxygen-level-dependent response in 18 female adolescents with bulimia nervosa and 18 healthy female age-matched subjects during performance on a Simon spatial incompatibility task. Bayesian analyses were used to compare the two groups on patterns of brain activation during correct responses to conflict stimuli and to explore the effects of antecedent stimulus context on group differences in self-regulation and conflict resolution.ResultsAdolescents with and without bulimia nervosa performed similarly on the task. During correct responses in conflict trials, frontostriatal circuits-including the right inferolateral and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices and putamen-failed to activate to the same degree in adolescents with bulimia nervosa as in healthy comparison subjects. Instead, deactivation was seen in the left inferior frontal gyrus as well as a neural system encompassing the posterior cingulate cortex and superior frontal gyrus. Group differences in cortical and striatal regions were driven by the differential responses to stimuli preceded by conflict and nonconflict stimuli, respectively.ConclusionsWhen engaging the self-regulatory control processes necessary to resolve conflict, adolescents with bulimia nervosa displayed abnormal patterns of activation in frontostriatal and default-mode systems. Their abnormal processing of the antecedent stimulus context conditioned their brain response to conflict differently from that of healthy comparison subjects, specifically in frontal regions. It is suspected that functional disturbances in frontal portions of frontostriatal systems may release feeding behaviors from regulatory control, thereby perpetuating the conflicting desires to consume fattening foods and avoid weight gain that characterize bulimia nervosa.

Dataset Information

Attention Network Dysfunction in Bulimia Nervosa - An fMRI Study.

Publications

Attention Network Dysfunction in Bulimia Nervosa - An fMRI Study.

Similar Datasets

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