Cited by 40Posttraumatic Stress Disorder ResearchTraumatic Brain Injury ResearchNeural and Behavioral Psychology Studies

Increased recruitment of cognitive control in the presence of traumatic stimuli in complex PTSD

Herzog, Julia I., Niedtfeld, Inga, Rausch, Sophie, Thome, Janine, Mueller-Engelmann, Meike, Steil, Regina, Priebe, Kathlen, Bohus, Martin +1 more·2019·European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience

Abstract

A neurocircuitry model of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suggests increased amygdala responses to emotional stimuli, coupled with hypoactivation of prefrontal regions associated with cognitive control. However, results are heterogenous across different subsamples of PTSD as well as different paradigms. We investigated cognitive control in a classic and emotional Stroop task in 28 female patients with complex PTSD (cPTSD), 28 female trauma-exposed healthy controls (TCs) and 28 female non-trauma-exposed healthy controls (HCs) using functional neuroimaging. Afterwards, we assessed memory function in a spontaneous free recall and recognition task. Patients with cPTSD displayed significantly greater Stroop interference with trauma-related words (as reflected in slower reaction times and increased errors) compared to the other conditions and compared to the TC and HC groups. Moreover, patients with cPTSD showed increased activation in the context of trauma-related words in brain regions associated with cognitive control (dlPFC, vmPFC, dACC) compared to both control groups, and a trend for increased activation in the insula compared to the HC group. Increased recruitment of regions contributing to cognitive control in patients with cPTSD, together with a lack of amygdala response may point to efforts to compensate for emotional distraction caused by the trauma-related words.

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Crossref · 10.1007/s00406-017-0822-x

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  • In cPTSD there is evidence of heightened dorsolateral and ventromedial PfC and anterior cingulate activation in reaction to negatively valenced emotional stimuli.

    “in cPTSD there is evidence of heightened dorsolateral and ventromedial PfC and anterior cingulate activation in reaction to negatively valenced emotional stimuli [71, 168].”

    From Complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder (2021) · cites this paper as [71]

  • Distinctions in neural patterns that have been reported between BPD and cPTSD thus are based mainly on a DESNOS formulation of cPTSD, or using severe child-abuse-related DSM-5 PTSD as a proxy for cPTSD.

    “Distinctions in neural patterns that have reported between BPD and cPTSD thus are based mainly on a DESNOS formulation of cPTSD, or using severe child-abuse-related DSM-5 PTSD as a proxy for cPTSD [71].”

    From Complex PTSD and borderline personality disorder (2021) · cites this paper as [71]

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Authors
Herzog, J. I., Niedtfeld, I., Rausch, S., Thome, J., Mueller-Engelmann, M., Steil, R., Priebe, K., Bohus, M., & Schmahl, C.
Affiliations
  • Heidelberg University (DE)
  • Goethe University Frankfurt (DE)
  • University of Antwerp (BE)
  • Western University (CA)
Corresponding author
Herzog, Julia I.
Venue
European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience
Published
2017-07-15
Volume
269
Issue
2
Pages
147-159
ISSN
  • 0003-9373 (ISSN-L)
  • 0940-1334
  • 1433-8491
OpenAlex
W2734683748
Cited by
40
References
83
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 4
FWCI
4.41
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (01KR1303A)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Traumatic Brain Injury Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
Keywords
complex PTSD, cognitive control, Stroop task, amygdala, prefrontal cortex, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, insula, emotional distraction, memory, female patients
MeSH terms
Psychological Trauma, Adult, Cerebral Cortex, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Psychomotor Performance, Mental Recall, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Recognition, Psychology, Young Adult, Executive Function, Stroop Test, Functional Neuroimaging

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