title: Evaluation of regional cerebral blood flow changes in panic disorder with Tc99m-HMPAO SPECT.
abstract: The objective of this study is to investigate differences in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) and rCBF asymmetry index values between panic disorder patients (n=22) and normal comparison subjects (n=19) using Tc99m-hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime single photon emission tomography imaging. A decrease in perfusion in the bilateral frontal regions and a relative increase in perfusion in the right medial and superior frontal regions were found. There were significant positive correlations between scores on the Panic and Agoraphobia Scale and rCBF asymmetry index values of the parietal, superior temporal and lateral temporal regions in the panic disorder patients. These correlations point to a relationship between the severity of panic disorder and relative right brain activation. Activation of the amygdala, increased CBF in the frontal region, or hyperactivation of the locus ceruleus seen in panic disorder may explain the decrease in the rCBF in the inferior frontal region.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul 34390, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ibrahim
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Eren
authors.forename: Raşit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tükel
authors.forename: Aslihan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Polat
authors.forename: Remzi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Karaman
authors.forename: Seher
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Unal
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000379:Agoraphobia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity / Q000502:physiology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016584:Panic Disorder / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology; D012016:Reference Values; D012039:Regional Blood Flow / Q000502:physiology; D019690:Technetium Tc 99m Exametazime; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon
chemical_list: D019690:Technetium Tc 99m Exametazime