Functional magnetic resonance imaging study of emotional Stroop task in patient with generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder

Objective:To investigate brain function during emotional Stroop task in patients with generalized anxiety disorder(GAD) and panic disorder(PD),and compare the difference between them.Method:10 patients with PD,5 patients with GAD,who confirmed with structural clinical interview for diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders,fourth edition,text revision(DSM-IV-TR),and 9 controls finished related psychological assessment and had functional magnetic resonance imaging(fMRI) scan within the specified time.Results:The results of fMRI showed that patients with PD and GAD both showed decreased recruitment of labor and augmented sub-labor evaluation when dealing with GAD-related stimuli's distracting;patients with PD showed decreased labor function when processing the distracting of panic/fear stimuli;patients with PD showed decreased labor function when doing positive words task,while patients with GAD showed increased labor and sub-labor evaluation.Conclusion:GAD and PD patients have different pattern of brain function.