This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Frewen, P. Articles by Lanius, R. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Frewen, P. Articles by Lanius, R. Related Collections PTSD Radiology and Brain Imaging

Neural Correlates of Levels of Emotional Awareness During Trauma Script-Imagery in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

From the Departments of Psychology (P.F., Ri.L., R.W.J.N.), Psychiatry (Ri.L., R.W.J.N., M.D., Ru.L.), Neuroscience (Ri.L., Ru.L.) and Medical Biophysics (T.S.), University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada (R.W.J.N.); University of Arizona, Arizona Health Sciences Center (Ri.L.), Tucson, Arizona; Imaging Research Laboratories (T.S.), Robarts Research Institute, London Ontario, Canada.

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Ruth A. Lanius, London Health Sciences Centre, 339 Windermere Road, London, Ontario, Canada, N6A 5A5. E-mail: ruth.lanius{at}lhsc.on.ca

Objective: To examine individual differences in levels of emotional awareness as a predictor of the blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) response to trauma script-driven imagery in trauma-exposed individuals with (n = 25) and without (n = 16) posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Methods: Participants completed the Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale (LEAS) and a functional magnetic resonance imaging trauma script-driven imagery paradigm.

Results: Patients with PTSD exhibited lower LEAS scores in comparison with the control group. LEAS scores correlated positively with BOLD activity during trauma script-imagery in the ventral anterior cingulate cortex (vACC) in healthy controls, whereas LEAS scores correlated negatively with activation of vACC in individuals with PTSD.

Conclusion: Patients with PTSD exhibit lower than average levels of emotional awareness. Levels of emotional awareness are differentially associated with vACC response during trauma script-driven imagery in healthy controls versus individuals with PTSD.

Key Words: emotional awareness • alexithymia • posttraumatic stress disorder • script-driven imagery • anterior cingulate cortex • medial prefrontal cortex

Abbreviations: PTSD = posttraumatic stress disorder; LEAS = Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale; vACC = ventral anterior cingulate cortex; dACC = dorsal anterior cingulate cortex; mPFC = medial prefrontal cortex; BA = Brodmann Area; DSM-IV = Diagnostic and Statistical Manual—4^th Edition; BOLD = blood oxygenation level dependent; SVC = small volume corrected; fMRI = functional magnetic resonance imaging.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. D. Lane Neural Substrates of Implicit and Explicit Emotional Processes: A Unifying Framework for Psychosomatic Medicine Psychosom Med, February 1, 2008; 70(2): 214 - 231. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]