In situ fNIRS measurements during cognitive behavioral emotion regulation training in rumination-focused therapy: A randomized-controlled trial.
Hendrik Laicher, Isabell Int-Veen, Leonie Woloszyn, Ariane Wiegand, Agnes Kroczek, Daniel Sippel, Elisabeth J Leehr, Glenn Lawyer, Francesco Albasini, Christian Frischholz, Rainald Mössner, Vanessa Nieratschker, Julian Rubel, Andreas Fallgatter, Ann-Christine Ehlis, David Rosenbaum
NeuroImage. Clinical January 1, 2023 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2023.103525 via PubMed
Summary
Mindfulness-based Emotion Regulation Training (MBERT) reduces depressive symptoms and rumination in people with major depressive disorder. During emotion regulation exercises, brain activity increased in the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, key regions of the cognitive control network. Across training sessions, oxygenation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex decreased, suggesting neural adaptation. The study used functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure brain activity during therapy sessions in 42 participants.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial with crossover design Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 42 |
| Population | Subjects with major depressive disorder (MDD) |
| Keywords | Emotion regulation In situ measurements Major depression Psychotherapy |
| Citations | 9 |
| Key finding | MBERT is effective in treating depressive symptoms and rumination, with increased cortical activation in the bilateral IFG and DLPFC during emotion regulation and decreased oxygenation in the bilateral DLPFC across sessions. |
Abstract
Repetitive negative thinking (RNT), including rumination, plays a key role in various psychopathologies. Although several psychotherapeutic treatments have been developed to reduce RNT, the neural correlates of those specific treatments and of psychotherapy in general are largely unknown. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) offers the potential to investigate the neural correlates of psychotherapeutic techniques in situ. Therefore, in this study we investigated the efficacy and neural correlates of a fNIRS adapted Mindfulness-based Emotion Regulation Training (MBERT) for the treatment of depressive rumination in 42 subjects with major depressive disorder (MDD) in a cross-over designed randomized controlled trial. Using psychometric measures, subjective ratings and fNIRS, we analyzed in situ changes in depressive symptom severity, ruminative thoughts and cortical activity in the Cognitive Control Network (CCN). Our results show that MBERT is effective in treating depressive symptoms and rumination. On a neural level, we found consistently higher cortical activation during emotion regulation training compared to control trials in the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Furthermore, cortical oxygenation decreased from session to session in the bilateral DLPFC. The relevance of the results for the psychotherapeutic treatment of MDD as well as further necessary investigations are discussed.