Article
Clinical Neurology
Johannes Jungilligens, Jorg Wellmer, Annika Kowoll, Uwe Schlegel, Nikolai Axmacher, Stoyan Popkirov
Summary: The study found that patients with dissociative seizures (DS) exhibit impaired behavioral control in response to emotional stimuli, and these differences are associated with illness characteristics and psychological trauma history.
SEIZURE-EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EPILEPSY
(2021)
Review
Clinical Neurology
M. Raquel Lopez, W. Curt LaFrance
Summary: This review summarizes the recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). It emphasizes the effectiveness of psychotherapeutic modalities in empowering patients and reducing seizures, and highlights the importance of a multidisciplinary and holistic approach. The review also suggests the need for additional treatment modalities and further research for patients who are refractory to current treatment.
CURRENT NEUROLOGY AND NEUROSCIENCE REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Ruta Mameniskiene, Kristijonas Puteikis, Jaime Carrizosa-Moog
Summary: This study explored how neurology specialists perceive psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) through an art project, finding that they often see PNES as masking underlying psychological issues with limited understanding of its origin. Specialists used the symbol of a labyrinth to represent the challenges in diagnosing and providing multidisciplinary care for patients with PNES.
SEIZURE-EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EPILEPSY
(2021)
Review
Clinical Neurology
Alejandra Ines Lanzillotti, Mercedes Sarudiansky, Nicolas Robertino Lombardi, Guido Pablo Korman, Luciana D. Alessio
Summary: Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) are paroxysmal events that resemble epileptic seizures but are not caused by epilepsy, affecting a significant percentage of patients attending epilepsy centers. These seizures are often misdiagnosed and undertreated, with comorbidities such as depression and trauma commonly present. Helthcare providers need to consider psychological mechanisms in diagnosis and treatment of PNES.
NEUROPSYCHIATRIC DISEASE AND TREATMENT
(2021)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Salini Sumangala, Di Liang, Shanika Samarasekera
Summary: Epileptic seizures are well recognized as a presenting symptom in patients with brain tumors, however much less is known about coexisting nonepileptic attack disorder (NEAD) in this population. Establishing a diagnosis of NEAD can be challenging, especially in those with concomitant epilepsy. Nonepileptic attack disorder is associated with a high rate of morbidity, often due to coexisting psychological factors which may require the input of multiple services.
EPILEPSY & BEHAVIOR
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Saafi Mousa, Gary Latchford, Anna Weighall, Hannah Nash, Rebecca Murray-Leslie, Markus Reuber, Samuel D. Relton, Christopher D. Graham
Summary: The study found that NEAD patients have more severe subjective sleep impairments and worse objective sleep metrics, characterized by disrupted sleep patterns. Attacks were more likely to occur on days preceded by longer, more restful sleep.
EPILEPSY & BEHAVIOR
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Alexander Lehn, Emily Watson, Elizabeth G. Ryan, Maryon Jones, Vince Cheah, Sasha Dionisio
Summary: A significant portion of patients presenting to emergency departments with symptoms resembling epileptic seizures are actually diagnosed with PNES, particularly those with prolonged or multiple events. Early recognition and accurate diagnosis of patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures are crucial to prevent unnecessary iatrogenic harm and provide appropriate treatment.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Carmen Uhlmann, Petra Schmid
Summary: This study aimed to describe the disease course of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) over a prolonged period of time and identify distinguishing features among participants. The findings showed a decrease in seizure frequency over time, but participants still faced significant limitations in their functional level and health-related quality of life. Improved treatment approaches are needed to address these issues.
EPILEPSY & BEHAVIOR
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Christina Mueller, Adam M. Goodman, Jane B. Allendorfer, Rodolphe Nenert, Tyler E. Gaston, Leslie E. Grayson, Stephen Correia, Noah S. Philip, W. Curt LaFrance, Jerzy P. Szaflarski
Summary: This study aimed to quantify changes in white matter morphology using neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) after neurobehavioral therapy (NBT) for functional seizures (FS). The results showed that patients with FS exhibited white matter plasticity in specific regions, which correlated with improvements in psychosocial functioning. NODDI could be considered for future assessments of interventions in patients with FS.
ANNALS OF NEUROLOGY
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Wesley T. Kerr, Siddhika S. Sreenivasan, Corinne H. Allas, Emily A. Janio, Amir H. Karimi, Ishita Dubey, Shannon R. D'Ambrosio, Jena M. Smith, Jerome Engel, Jamie D. Feusner, John M. Stern
Summary: The clinical characteristics of functional seizures vary with age-of-onset, with female predominance decreasing nonlinearly and ictal behavior showing no substantial variation. Diagnosis delay is longer in older patients, comorbidities increase with age-of-onset.
SEIZURE-EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EPILEPSY
(2021)
Review
Health Care Sciences & Services
Soultana Papadopoulou, Efterpi Pavlidou, Georgios Argyris, Thaleia Flouda, Panagiota Koukoutsidi, Konstantinos Krikonis, Sidrah Shah, Dana Chirosca-Vasileiou, Stergios Boussios
Summary: This study explores the relationship between speech disorder-stuttering and epileptic seizures, and raises awareness of the diagnostic dilemmas and potential misdiagnosis. It emphasizes the complexity and importance of accurately detecting stuttering-induced epilepsy.
JOURNAL OF PERSONALIZED MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Aniebiot-Abasi Udofia, Tamarie Rocke
Summary: Psychogenic nonepileptic seizures, also known as Functional Seizures, are a highly disabling form of Functional Neurological Disorder. Diagnosis may be overlooked when patients present concurrent musculoskeletal/neurological symptoms, therefore detailed characterization of seizures and cautious use of diagnostics are equally important in establishing the diagnosis.
CLINICAL CASE REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Ellen J. Godena, David L. Perez, Laura D. Crain, Anne K. Fishel, Alice Flaherty, Rebecca Harley, Jonah N. Cohen
Summary: Functional neurologic (conversion) disorder is a neuropsychiatric condition that represents the intersection of psychiatry and neurology. Advancements in rule-in diagnostic approaches and understanding of psychological factors have improved our knowledge of FND, with emphasis still placed on the importance of emotions in the conceptual understanding of this disorder.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHIATRY
(2021)
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Gabriela S. Gilmour, Ryan MacIsaac, Arsenije Subotic, Samuel Wiebe, Colin B. Josephson
Summary: Different clinical features have limited ability to distinguish between psychogenic nonepileptic attacks (PNEA) and epileptic seizures (ES). There is a need for the development of multisource predictive tools to optimize diagnostic likelihood ratios.
EPILEPSY & BEHAVIOR
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Antonia Villagran, Guttorm Eldoen, Roderick Duncan, Kari Modalsli Aaberg, Dag Hofoss, Morten Ingvar Lossius
Summary: This study provided a population-based estimate of the prevalence of PNES for the first time. The findings suggest that the prevalence of PNES falls within the range of estimates from non-population-based data. A notably high prevalence of PNES was found in the 15-19-year age group.
Article
Health Care Sciences & Services
Pieter J. Rohrbach, Alexandra E. Dingemans, Brigitte A. Essers, Eric F. Van Furth, Philip Spinhoven, Catharina G. M. Groothuis-Oudshoorn, Janine A. Van Til, M. Elske Van den Akker-Van Marle
Summary: The ICECAP-A assesses five capabilities important to well-being and may be a valuable addition in evaluating quality of life beyond health. The Dutch translation showed adequate test-retest reliability and construct validity, indicating potential added value in non-traditional health intervention areas.
QUALITY OF LIFE RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Antje Riepenhausen, Ilya M. Veer, Carolin Wackerhagen, Zala C. Reppmann, Goeran Koeber, Jose Luis Ayuso-Mateos, Sophie A. Bogemann, Giovanni Corrao, Mireia Felez-Nobrega, Josep Maria Haro Abad, Erno Hermans, Judith van Leeuwen, Klaus Lieb, Vincent Lorant, Murielle Mary-Krause, Roberto Mediavilla, Maria Melchior, Ellenor Mittendorfer-Rutz, Matteo Monzio Compagnoni, Kuan-Yu Pan, Lara Puhlmann, Karin Roelofs, Marit Sijbrandij, Pierre Smith, Oliver Tuescher, Anke Witteveen, Matthias Zerban, Raffael Kalisch, Hannes Kroeger, Henrik Walter
Summary: This study identified several psychological risk and protective factors related to psychological distress outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. The relevance of longitudinal assessments and the implications for targeted prevention and intervention programs during highly stressful times were discussed.
PSYCHOLOGICAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Review
Neurosciences
Karin Roelofs, Peter Dayan
Summary: When animals anticipate a threat, they freeze and become temporarily immobile. Freezing allows for the coordination of cognitive and somatic processes, preparing the animal for action. It is not a passive fear state, but rather a state that helps conceal overt responses while optimizing sensory processing and action preparation.
NATURE REVIEWS NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Krisna Adiasto, Debby G. J. Beckers, Madelon L. M. van Hooff, Karin Roelofs, Sabine A. E. Geurts
Summary: Effective stress recovery is important for preventing long-term consequences of stress exposure. Music listening has been suggested as a beneficial method for stress reduction but empirical support for this remains unclear.
Article
Neurosciences
Lisa Luther, Jorn M. Horschig, Jacobien M. van Peer, Karin Roelofs, Ole Jensen, Muriel A. Hagenaars
Summary: Emotional cues can enhance attention and information processing. Electrophysiological brain research suggests that increased gamma band activity and decreased alpha band activity over posterior brain areas are associated with attention allocation. This study investigated whether the modulation of brain oscillations occurs in a stimulus-induced manner or leads to prolonged state-like changes. The results showed decreased alpha and increased gamma power in response to unpleasant pictures compared to pleasant pictures, supporting a stimulus-induced effect of alpha and gamma power. The findings also suggest event-related attention toward unpleasant pictures and are discussed in relation to previous EEG research and behavioral research on threat-induced freezing-like response.
FRONTIERS IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Health Care Sciences & Services
Pieter J. Rohrbach, Alexandra E. Dingemans, Catharine Evers, Eric F. Van Fruth, Philip Spinhoven, Jiska J. Aardoom, Irene Lahde, Fleur C. Clemens, M. Elske Van den Akker-Van Marle
Summary: This study conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis on the cost-effectiveness of internet interventions for mental disorders compared with usual care. The results indicated that internet interventions were slightly more effective in improving quality of life but were equally expensive as usual care. Rating: 7 points
JOURNAL OF MEDICAL INTERNET RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nynke A. Groenewold, Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam, Alyssa R. Amod, Max A. Laansma, Laura S. Van Velzen, Moji Aghajani, Kevin Hilbert, Hyuntaek Oh, Ramiro Salas, Andrea P. Jackowski, Pedro M. Pan, Giovanni A. Salum, James R. Blair, Karina S. Blair, Joy Hirsch, Spiro P. Pantazatos, Franklin R. Schneier, Ardesheer Talati, Karin Roelofs, Inge Volman, Laura Blanco-Hinojo, Narcis Cardoner, Jesus Pujol, Katja Beesdo-Baum, Christopher R. K. Ching, Sophia Thomopoulos, Andreas Jansen, Tilo Kircher, Axel Krug, Igor Nenadic, Frederike Stein, Udo Dannlowski, Dominik Grotegerd, Hannah Lemke, Susanne Meinert, Alexandra Winter, Michael Erb, Benjamin Kreifelts, Qiyong Gong, Su Lui, Fei Zhu, Benson Mwangi, Jair C. Soares, Mon-Ju Wu, Ali Bayram, Mesut Canli, Rasit Tukel, P. Michiel Westenberg, Alexandre Heeren, Henk R. Cremers, David Hofmann, Thomas Straube, Alexander G. G. Doruyter, Christine Lochner, Jutta Peterburs, Marie-Jose Van Tol, Raquel E. Gur, Antonia N. Kaczkurkin, Bart Larsen, Theodore D. Satterthwaite, Courtney A. Filippi, Andrea L. Gold, Anita Harrewijn, Andre Zugman, Robin Buelow, Hans J. Grabe, Henry Voelzke, Katharina Wittfeld, Joscha Boehnlein, Katharina Dohm, Harald Kugel, Elisabeth Schrammen, Peter Zwanzger, Elisabeth J. Leehr, Lisa Sindermann, Tali M. Ball, Gregory A. Fonzo, Martin P. Paulus, Alan Simmons, Murray B. Stein, Heide Klumpp, K. Luan Phan, Tomas Furmark, Kristoffer N. T. Mansson, Amirhossein Manzouri, Suzanne N. Avery, Jennifer Urbano Blackford, Jacqueline A. Clauss, Brandee Feola, Jennifer C. Harper, Chad M. Sylvester, Ulrike Lueken, Dick J. Veltman, Anderson M. Winkler, Neda Jahanshad, Daniel S. Pine, Paul M. Thompson, Dan J. Stein, Nic J. A. Van der Wee
Summary: Limited convergence exists in neuroimaging investigations of subcortical brain region volumes in social anxiety disorder (SAD). Variations in methodological approaches and sample selection based on age and clinical characteristics may contribute to inconsistent findings. A global mega-analysis initiated by the ENIGMA-Anxiety Working Group revealed subtle volumetric alterations in subcortical regions in SAD patients. Differences were found in putamen and pallidum volumes, with additional factors such as comorbid anxiety disorders and age of SAD onset influencing these volumetric differences.
MOLECULAR PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Educational
Maaike Verhagen, Mare Derks, Karin Roelofs, Dominique Maciejewski
Summary: Adolescent loneliness is associated with characteristics in infancy and childhood, and this relationship persists throughout early, middle, and late adolescence. The association between infant behavioral inhibition and social withdrawal is not moderated by parenting style, but rather indirectly affects adolescent loneliness through childhood social withdrawal.
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Karin Roelofs, Bob Bramson, Ivan Toni
Summary: Emotion regulation is crucial for survival in a rapidly changing world. The ability to switch between different emotional control strategies is important for dealing with various demands. The Flexible Emotion Control Theory (FECT) integrates insights from decision and affective sciences to explain how individuals can adapt their emotion-regulatory behavior. FECT proposes that rapid switching between emotional control strategies requires evaluating both current and alternative options, and involves specific prefrontal structures such as the frontal pole.
ANNALS OF THE NEW YORK ACADEMY OF SCIENCES
(2023)
Review
Clinical Neurology
Caoimhe McLoughlin, Ingrid Hoeritzauer, Veronica Cabreira, Selma Aybek, Caitlin Adams, Jane Alty, Harriet A. Ball, Janet Baker, Kim Bullock, Chrissie Burness, Barbara A. Dworetzky, Sara Finkelstein, Beatrice Garcin, Jeannette Gelauff, Laura H. Goldstein, Anika Jordbru, Anne-Catherine M. L. Huys, Aoife Laffan, Sarah C. Lidstone, Stefanie Caroline Linden, Lea Ludwig, Julie Maggio, Francesca Morgante, Elizabeth Mallam, Clare Nicholson, Mary O'Neal, Suzanne O'Sullivan, Isabel Parees, Panayiota Petrochilos, Susannah Pick, Wendy Phillips, Karin Roelofs, Rachel Newby, Biba Stanton, Cordelia Gray, Eileen M. Joyce, Marina A. J. Tijssen, Trudie Chalder, Maxanne McCormick, Paula Gardiner, Indrit Begue, Margaret C. Tuttle, Isobel Williams, Sarah McRae, Valerie Voon, Laura McWhirter
Summary: Functional neurological disorder (FND) is often overlooked and misunderstood by clinicians, despite being a common and accurately diagnosable condition based on clinical signs. People with FND face discrimination from healthcare providers, researchers, and the public, reflecting the neglect of disorders primarily affecting women. We argue that FND is a feminist issue, drawing on historical and contemporary perspectives from clinical, research, and social domains. We call for equal attention and support for FND in medical education, research, and clinical services to ensure adequate care for those affected.
JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGY NEUROSURGERY AND PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Letter
Neurosciences
Karin Roelofs, Felix H. Klaassen, Peter Dayan
NATURE REVIEWS NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Biological
Agnieszka K. Adamczyk, Miroslaw Wyczesany, Karin Roelofs, Jacobien M. van Peer
Summary: Evolutionary threats (ETs) elicit stronger fear responses and specific phobias compared to modern threats (MTs). The processing of ET relies on lower-order neural fear circuits, making it less susceptible to higher-order cognitive emotion regulation. In a study involving ERP, participants passively viewed high- and low-threat pictures and successfully downregulated responses using cognitive reappraisal or distraction strategies. ET triggered stronger attention processing compared to MT, and distraction was more effective in early and stronger downregulation of responses.
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Anna Tyborowska, Inge Volman, Hannah C. M. Niermann, Anna L. Dapprich, Sanny Smeekens, Antonius H. N. Cillessen, Ivan Toni, Karin Roelofs
Summary: A paradoxical effect of testosterone is observed in social emotional behavior between adolescents and adults. While high testosterone levels are associated with increased emotion control in the prefrontal cortex during adolescence, this neuro-endocrine relationship is reversed in adulthood. This study investigated whether this functional transition also occurs in human adolescents and young adults. The findings suggest that testosterone-dependent maturation of the prefrontal-amygdala circuit supporting emotion control changes during the transition from middle adolescence into young adulthood, with a decrease in prefrontal cortex engagement and an increase in testosterone-modulated amygdala reactivity.
DEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Pieter J. Rohrbach, Marjolein Fokkema, Philip Spinhoven, Eric F. Van Furth, Alexandra E. Dingemans
Summary: In order to optimize treatment recommendations for eating disorders, this study investigated predictors and moderators of an online self-help intervention and online support from an expert patient. The results revealed that the interventions were particularly beneficial for treatment-naive individuals in terms of reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety, and higher levels of social support predicted fewer eating disorder symptoms in the future.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF EATING DISORDERS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Bob Bramson, Sjoerd Meijer, Annelies van Nuland, Ivan Toni, Karin Roelofs
Summary: It is not well understood why anxious individuals fail to control emotional behaviour. This study shows that highly anxious individuals have an overexcitable lateral frontopolar cortex (FPl) and do not recruit this region during emotional action control. Their FPl is overexcitable and receives stronger amygdalofugal projections, but fails to be recruited during emotional action control, leading to a functional anatomical shift to other prefrontal areas.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)