Childhood abuse is associated with structural impairment in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and aggressiveness in patients with borderline personality disorder

TY - JOUR

T1 - Childhood abuse is associated with structural impairment in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and aggressiveness in patients with borderline personality disorder

AU - Morandotti, Niccolò

AU - Dima, Danai

AU - Jogia, Jigar

AU - Frangou, Sophia

AU - Sala, Michela

AU - Vidovich, Giulia Zelda De

AU - Lazzaretti, Matteo

AU - Gambini, Francesca

AU - Marraffini, Elisa

AU - d'Allio, Giorgio

AU - Barale, Francesco

AU - Zappoli, Federico

AU - Caverzasi, Edgardo

AU - Brambilla, Paolo

N1 - Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

PY - 2013/7/30

Y1 - 2013/7/30

N2 - Volume reduction and functional impairment in areas of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) have been found in borderline personality disorder (BPD), particularly in patients with a history of childhood abuse. These abnormalities may contribute to the expression of emotion dysregulation and aggressiveness. In this study we investigated whether the volume of the PFC is reduced in BPD patients and whether a history of childhood abuse would be associated with greater PFC structural changes. Structural MRI data were obtained from 18 BPD patients and 19 healthy individuals matched for age, sex, handedness, and education and were analyzed using voxel based morphometry. The Child Abuse Scale was used to elicit a past history of abuse; aggression was evaluated using the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI). The volume of the right ventrolateral PFC (VLPFC) was significantly reduced in BPD subjects with a history of childhood abuse compared to those without this risk factor. Additionally, right VLPFC gray matter volume significantly correlated with the BDHI total score and with BDHI irritability and negativism subscale scores in patients with a history of childhood abuse. Our results suggest that a history of childhood abuse may lead to increased aggression mediated by an impairment of the right VLPFC.

AB - Volume reduction and functional impairment in areas of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) have been found in borderline personality disorder (BPD), particularly in patients with a history of childhood abuse. These abnormalities may contribute to the expression of emotion dysregulation and aggressiveness. In this study we investigated whether the volume of the PFC is reduced in BPD patients and whether a history of childhood abuse would be associated with greater PFC structural changes. Structural MRI data were obtained from 18 BPD patients and 19 healthy individuals matched for age, sex, handedness, and education and were analyzed using voxel based morphometry. The Child Abuse Scale was used to elicit a past history of abuse; aggression was evaluated using the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI). The volume of the right ventrolateral PFC (VLPFC) was significantly reduced in BPD subjects with a history of childhood abuse compared to those without this risk factor. Additionally, right VLPFC gray matter volume significantly correlated with the BDHI total score and with BDHI irritability and negativism subscale scores in patients with a history of childhood abuse. Our results suggest that a history of childhood abuse may lead to increased aggression mediated by an impairment of the right VLPFC.

KW - Adult

KW - Adult Survivors of Child Abuse

KW - Aggression

KW - Atrophy

KW - Borderline Personality Disorder

KW - Case-Control Studies

KW - Female

KW - Humans

KW - Magnetic Resonance Imaging

KW - Male

KW - Neuroimaging

KW - Prefrontal Cortex

U2 - 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2013.02.002

DO - 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2013.02.002

M3 - Article

C2 - 23693087

SN - 0165-1781

VL - 213

SP - 18

EP - 23

JO - Psychiatry Research

JF - Psychiatry Research

IS - 1

ER -