Dissociating executive prefrontal substrates following capsulotomy in obsessive-compulsive disorder - PubMed
5 hours ago
- #Executive function
- #Capsulotomy
- #Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- OCD involves executive function impairments related to fronto-striatal circuits.
- Capsulotomy, an ablative therapy, was studied in treatment-refractory OCD patients, with post-operative assessments after at least 6 months.
- The study included OCD capsulotomy patients, OCD controls, and healthy controls, using tasks for set-shifting, working memory, and conflict processing with fMRI and behavioral measures.
- Capsulotomy improved error-monitoring and behavioral flexibility in the set-shifting tasks, linked to changes in prefrontal areas, but did not affect working memory or conflict processing.
- Working memory impairments and frontoparietal network dysfunction were observed in both OCD groups, unaffected by capsulotomy.
- Conflict processing deficits in OCD were also unchanged by capsulotomy, indicating these may be trait markers of OCD.
- Findings suggest capsulotomy selectively modifies state-dependent cognitive flexibility while leaving other executive deficits intact, informing clinical safety and patient selection for neuromodulation.