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- New research has identified areas of the brain involved in obsessive-compulsive disorder, or OCD.
- The researchers analyzed the brain scans of nearly 500 people with or without OCD.
- They found that, compared to people without OCD, sufferers exhibited more activity in areas of the brain involved in error recognition, but less activity in areas of the brain that help stop them. errors.
- This discovery could lay the foundation for a better treatment of OCD, according to the authors.
New research analyzing the brains of nearly 500 people could provide clues to help experts better treat obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a state of mental health characterized by uncontrollable and recurring thoughts and behaviors.
The researchers grouped the results of 10 previous studies comparing people with and without OCD. In these studies, participants were subjected to functional MRI scans that examined their brain activity in two functions: treatment errors and inhibitory control, a process that controls behavior and thoughts.
Their findings, published Thursday in the journal Biological Psychiatry, showed that – compared to people without the disease – people with OCD were more active in the areas of the brain involved in error recognition, but less activity in areas of the brain involved in arresting actions, according to a statement from the University of Michigan about research.
"These results show that in OCD, the brain responds too much to errors and too little to stop the signals," said Luke Norman, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Michigan, lead author of the study, in his press release.
Read more:The most common myths about OCD – and why they are wrong
The research focused on the cingulo-opercular network, a set of brain areas that "monitors" errors and the need to stop actions, the statement added. The new analysis suggests that the brains of patients with OCD could get stuck in compulsive "loops", the study authors wrote. Even if the brain signals a thought or behavior of OCD as being wrong, it may not have the power to stop it.
In general, people with OCD lack control over their obsessions (unwanted thoughts that trigger distress) and their compulsions (behaviors that occur in response to these obsessions), even though they recognize that these thoughts and behaviors are excessive, according to National Institute of Mental Health. (For example, a common obsession is fear of germs or contamination, and common compulsions include washing or over-cleaning hands.)
The causes of OCD are still unknown, but new research suggests that specific abnormalities in the treatment of errors deep within the brain may play a role in the disease.
Experts had suspected that these abnormalities were involved in OCD, said Norman in a statement, but this was not "conclusively proven" because each study involved a small number of participants.
"By combining the data from ten studies and nearly 500 healthy patients and volunteers, we have seen how long-established brain circuits that are crucial for OCD are actually involved in the disease," he said. added.
Read more: 13 things to not say to someone who struggles with his mental health
The new research does not prove that the brain differences seen in patients with OCD are a definitive cause of the disease. The data used by researchers do not indicate whether these differences may be a cause or outcome of OCD, explained the university release.
"Further work is needed to deepen our understanding of the link between these abnormalities of performance and brain function and the symptoms of OCD," the authors wrote.
But knowing more about the brains of OCD patients may help guide future researchers toward better treatment.
At the moment, OCD treatment usually includes psychotherapy, medications, or a combination of both, but some patients continue to have symptoms, according to the NIMH.
Read more: 5 myths about OCD that we must stop believing
"In cognitive-behavioral therapy sessions for OCD, we work to help patients identify, confront and resist their compulsions … but this only works in about half of patients," Kate Fitzgerald said. , professor of psychiatry at the University of Michigan. paper, said in the statement. "With such discoveries, we hope to make CBT more effective or to guide new treatments."
"It's not a problem of black and deep behavior," she added. "OCD is a medical problem, which no one can blame." Brain imaging allows us to study it as heart specialists study electrocardiograms of their patients – and we can use that information to improve care. and the lives of people with OCD. "
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