Structural and Functional Connectivity Between the Amygdala and Orbital Frontal Cortex in Burning Mouth Syndrome: An fMRI Study

Frontiers in Psychology

article

Ying Tan¹  Xunhua Wu²  Jing Chen³  Lingyu Kong²  Zhaoxin Qian⁴ 

[1] Health Management Center, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University;Department of Radiology, Central Xiangya Hospital, South University;Center of Stomatology, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University;Department of Emergency, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University

关键词: burning mouth syndrome;    brain;    functional connectivity;    amygdala;    ventromedial prefrontal cortex;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01700

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Featuring a burning sensation in the tongue or other oral sites in the absence of observable lesions or laboratory findings, burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is a chronic intraoral pain disorder, which is one of the most common medically unexplained oral symptoms/syndromes. Previous studies have suggested that brain changes are involved in BMS; however, the small number of participants in these studies limited the conclusions that could be drawn. The present study aimed to further elucidate the brain anatomical and functional changes in BMS with a relatively large sample. Fifty-three patients (26 BMS patients and 27 gender- and age-matched controls) were recruited. Demographic information was collected via interviews. Visual analogue scale (VAS), anxiety, and depression scale were administered. Participants underwent an MRI scan (including one high-resolution structural scan, one diffusion tensor image, and one session of resting state scan) on the same day. The results showed that BMS patients had higher depression and anxiety levels than controls. BMS patients showed lower gray matter volume (GMV) in the bilateral ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) and increased functional connectivity between this region and the bilateral amygdala. Region of interest (ROI) analysis suggested that the functional connectivity between the bilateral VMPFC and amygdala correlated with the years of BMS illness in patients. The brain measures could predict the years of symptoms in the BMS group. These results suggest A potential neuromarker for the diagnosis and treatment of BMS.

【 授权许可】

CC BY