Víctor Calvo

Activación cerebral en estado de reposo en Default Mode Network de pacientes eutímicos con trastorno bipolar tipo I

INTRODUCTION As there are still doubts about brain connectivity in type I bipolar disorder (BID), resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (RS-fMRI) studies are necessary during euthymia for a better control of confounding factors. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the differences in brain activation between euthymic BID patients and control subjects using resting state- functional-magnetic resonance imaging (RS-fMRI), and to identify the lithium effect in these activations. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted on 21 BID patients (10 receiving lithium only, and 11 non-medicated) and 12 healthy control subjects, using RS fMRI and independent component analysis (ICA). RESULTS Increased activation was found in the right hippocampus (P=.049) and posterior cingulate (P=.040) within the Default Mode Network (DMN) when BID and control group were compared. No statistically significant differences were identified between BID on lithium only therapy and non-medicated BID patients. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that there are changes in brain activation and connectivity in BID even during euthymic phase and mainly within the DMN network, which could be relevant in affect regulation.