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. 2019 Feb;9(2):e01201.
doi: 10.1002/brb3.1201. Epub 2019 Jan 9.

Abnormalities of white matter microstructure in unmedicated patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: Changes after cognitive behavioral therapy

ZhaoXi Zhong  1   2 , XiangYun Yang  3 , RuiXiang Cao  3 , Ping Li  4 , ZhanJiang Li  3 , LuXian Lv  2 , Dai Zhang  1
Affiliations

Abnormalities of white matter microstructure in unmedicated patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder: Changes after cognitive behavioral therapy

ZhaoXi Zhong et al. Brain Behav. 2019 Feb.

Abstract

Background: Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Structural and functional white matter defects may suggest a vital neurobiological basis of OCD. However, the effects of CBT on white matter in OCD remain unknown.

Objective: The aim was to investigate white matter changes and the effect of CBT on white matter in OCD patients.

Methods: Fractional anisotropy (FA) maps were acquired using DTI. Participants included 85 patients with OCD and 90 healthy controls. VBM was then performed to detect regions with significant group differences.

Results: Obsessive-compulsive disorder patients exhibited significantly reduced FA values in bilateral OFC, right cerebellum, and left SPG, while higher FA values were observed in right PUT compared with healthy controls. Following CBT, OCD patients showed higher FA values in right MFG, left OFC, right cerebellum, and left MTG, and decreased FA values in right PUT in comparison with pretreatment. Furthermore, FA values in the left OFC of patients were significantly positively correlated with the Y-BOCS and its associated Compulsions subscale, and FA values in the right PUT were positively correlated with Compulsions subscale. In addition, the percentage change in FA values in left MTG was positively correlated with the percentage reduction in Compulsions subscale, while the percentage change in FA values in left OFC and right PUT was negatively correlated with the percentage reductions in Obsessive and Compulsions subscale, respectively.

Conclusions: Our findings demonstrate the abnormalities of white matter microstructure in unmedicated patients with OCD. These abnormalities may be partly reversed by CBT.

Keywords: cognitive behavioral therapy; diffusion tensor imaging; obsessive-compulsive disorder; white matter.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Regions with significant differences in FA value between OCD patients and NCs. The OCD patients showed decreased FA values in the right orbital frontal cortex, left orbital frontal cortex, right cerebellum, left superior parietal gyrus, higher FA values in the right putamen nucleus white matter. T‐score bars were shown on the right. Red and blue denote higher and lower FA values, respectively (p < 0.001, corrected)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Regions with significant differences in FA value between pre and posttreatment OCD patients (p < 0.001, corrected). The OCD patients showed significantly higher FA values in the right middle frontal gyrus, left orbital frontal cortex, right cerebellum, left middle temporal gyrus and decreased FA values in the right putamen nucleus after CBT. T‐score bars were shown on the right. Red and blue denote higher and lower FA value, respectively
Figure 3
Figure 3
The correlation between the FA values and Y‐BOCS scores at baseline in OCD patients. Plots showing the FA values were significantly positively correlated with Y‐BOCS
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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