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Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate white matter diffusion abnormalities using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in patients with psychogenic non-epileptic seizures (PNES). The total subjects consisted of 16 patients with a definite diagnosis of PNES and 16 age- and gender-matched healthy controls (HC). The diagnosis of PNES was confirmed by inpatient video/EEG monitoring; patients with epileptic seizures, additional types of seizures of unknown etiology, or who had an abnormal EEG indicating possible comorbid epilepsy were excluded. Also, HCs had no known history of comorbid neurological or psychiatric disorders. Whole brain fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) were calculated and compared between patients with PNES and HCs using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics (TBSS). Overall, significantly higher FA values were observed in left hemispheric regions in patients with PNES: the left corona radiata, left internal and external capsules, left superior temporal gyrus, and left uncinate fasciculus. No significant changes in MD were found between patients with PNES and HCs. The findings indicate that PNES are associated with increased FA in motor pathways and emotion regulatory network.
