Researchers identified brain regions linked to the effectiveness of behavioral therapy for individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). OCD, characterized by recurrent thoughts and repetitive behavior, is associated with functional impairment and increased health care use. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for OCD. However, responses to CBT vary among individuals, and treatment can be prolonged and expensive. Nicco R. Reggente and colleagues analyzed functional MRI data from 42 individuals, 18-60 years of age, with OCD before and after 4 weeks of CBT to evaluate whether brain patterns before treatment can be used to predict OCD severity after treatment. The authors assessed a number of brain networks, including the default mode network and visual network, whose abnormal connectivity and reorganization have been implicated in OCD. Machine learning analyses of the functional MRI data revealed that functional connectivity patterns in these brain networks before treatment predicted OCD severity after treatment, accounting for up to 67% of OCD variability among individuals after treatment. Moreover, compared with clinical scores before treatment, the networks were stronger predictors of OCD after treatment. According to the authors, the findings carry implications for refining OCD treatments.
Article #17-16686: "Multivariate resting-state functional connectivity predicts response to cognitive behavioral therapy in obsessive-compulsive disorder," by Nicco Reggente et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Nicco Reggente, University of California, Los Angeles, CA; tel: 856-332-6358; e-mail: <nreggente@psych.ucla.edu>
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