Abstract
Background
Converging evidence from neuroimaging studies suggests that impulsive aggression,
the core behavior in the DSM-5 diagnosis intermittent explosive disorder (IED), is
regulated by frontolimbic brain structures, particularly orbitofrontal cortex, ventral
medial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, amygdala, insula, and uncus.
Despite this evidence, no brain volumetric studies of IED have been reported as yet.
This study was conducted to test the hypothesis that gray matter volume in frontolimbic
brain structures of subjects with IED is lower than in healthy subjects and subjects
with other psychiatric conditions.
Methods
High-resolution magnetic resonance imaging scans using a three-dimensional magnetization-prepared
rapid acquisition gradient-echo sequence were performed in 168 subjects (n = 53 healthy control subjects, n = 58 psychiatric controls, n = 57 subjects with IED). Imaging data were analyzed by voxel-based morphometry methods
employing Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM8) software.
Results
Gray matter volume was found to be significantly lower in subjects with IED compared
with healthy control subjects and psychiatric controls in orbitofrontal cortex, ventral
medial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, amygdala, insula, and uncus.
These differences were not due to various confounding factors or to comorbidity with
other disorders previously reported to have reduced gray matter volume. Gray matter
volume in these areas was significantly and inversely correlated with measures of
aggression.
Conclusions
Reductions in the gray matter volume of frontolimbic structures may be a neuronal
characteristic of impulsively aggressive individuals with DSM-5 IED. These data suggest
an anatomic correlate accounting for functional deficits in social-emotional information
processing in these individuals.
Keywords
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Article Info
Publication History
Published online: October 05, 2015
Accepted:
September 29,
2015
Received in revised form:
September 29,
2015
Received:
August 4,
2015
Identification
Copyright
© 2016 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
