title: Neurobiological response to EMDR therapy in clients with different psychological traumas.
abstract: We assessed cortical activation differences in real-time upon exposure to traumatic memory between two distinct groups of psychologically traumatized clients also in comparison with healthy controls. We used electroencephalography (EEG) to compare neuronal activation throughout the bilateral stimulation phase of Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) sessions. We compared activation between the first (T0) and the last (T1) session, the latter performed after processing the index trauma. The group including all clients showed significantly higher cortical activity in orbito-frontal cortex at T0 shifting at T1 toward posterior associative regions. However, the subgroup of clients with chronic exposure to the traumatic event showed a cortical firing at both stages which was closer to that of controls. For the first time EEG monitoring enabled to disclose neurobiological differences between groups of clients with different trauma histories during the reliving of the traumatic event. Cortical activations in clients chronically exposed to traumatic memories were moderate, suggesting an association between social and environmental contexts with the neurobiological response to trauma exposure and psychotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pagani
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology Unit, Department of Neurosciences, Fondazione Policlinico "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Giorgio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Di Lorenzo
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Monaco
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology Unit, Department of Neurosciences, Fondazione Policlinico "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Daverio
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology Unit, Department of Neurosciences, Fondazione Policlinico "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Ioannis
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Giannoudas
authors.affiliation: EMDR Italy Association Bovisio Masciago, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: La Porta
authors.affiliation: EMDR Italy Association Bovisio Masciago, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Verardo
authors.affiliation: Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology Unit, Department of Neurosciences, Fondazione Policlinico "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Cinzia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Niolu
authors.affiliation: EMDR Italy Association Bovisio Masciago, Italy.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fernandez
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Chair of Psychiatry, Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy ; Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology Unit, Department of Neurosciences, Fondazione Policlinico "Tor Vergata" Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Siracusano
keywords: EEG; EMDR; bilateral ocular stimulation; chronic psychological trauma; prefrontal cortex activation; psychotherapy