Cerebral white matter deficiencies in pedophilic men.
The present investigation sought to identify which brain regions distinguish pedophilic from nonpedophilic men, using unbiased, automated analyses of the whole brain. T1-weighted magnetic resonance images (MRIs) were acquired from men who demonstrated illegal or clinically significant sexual behaviors or interests (n = 65) and from men who had histories of nonsexual offenses but no sexual offenses (n = 62). Sexual interest in children was assessed by participants' admissions of pedophilic interest, histories of committing sexual offenses against children, and psychophysiological responses in the laboratory to erotic stimuli depicting children or adults. Automated parcellation of the MRIs revealed significant negative associations between pedophilia and white matter volumes of the temporal and parietal lobes bilaterally. Voxel-based morphometry corroborated the associations and indicated that the regions of lower white matter volumes followed, and were limited to, two major fiber bundles: the superior fronto-occipital fasciculus and the right arcuate fasciculus. No significant differences were found in grey matter or in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Because the superior fronto-occipital and arcuate fasciculi connect the cortical regions that respond to sexual cues, these results suggest (1) that those cortical regions operate as a network for recognizing sexually relevant stimuli and (2) that pedophilia results from a partial disconnection within that network.
Cantor
James M
JM
Law and Mental Health Program, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 250 College Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5T 1R8. james_cantor@camh.net
Kabani
Noor
N
Christensen
Bruce K
BK
Zipursky
Robert B
RB
Barbaree
Howard E
HE
Dickey
Robert
R
Klassen
Philip E
PE
Mikulis
David J
DJ
Kuban
Michael E
ME
Blak
Thomas
T
Richards
Blake A
BA
Hanratty
M Katherine
MK
Blanchard
Ray
R
D000293:Adolescent; D000886:Anthropometry; D001111:Arcuate Nucleus of Hypothalamus / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002648:Child; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004882:Erotica; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology; D010378:Pedophilia / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010413:Penis / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology