title: Decreased medial frontal gyrus in patients with adjustment disorder.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Adjustment disorder is a frequent mental illness that occurs under various stressful situations. Whereas adjustment disorder has distinct clinical manifestations and diagnostic entity, few studies have investigated its underlying neural substrate. This study aimed to identify brain structural abnormalities among patients with adjustment disorder.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-five patients with adjustment disorder and 25 healthy controls participated in the study. Structural magnetic resonance imaging was performed, and a voxel-based morphometry was applied. Family-wise error-corrected p values for statistical analysis of comparative gray matters between patients with adjustment disorder and healthy controls were used.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients with adjustment disorder had decreased gray matter volume in the right medial frontal gyrus as compared to healthy controls. There were no brain regions that were decreased in the healthy controls as compared to patients with adjustment disorder.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study was a cross-sectional design.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that adjustment disorder arises from characteristic neural abnormalities, contrary to previous notions suggesting that adjustment disorder is a non-specific and/or residual diagnostic term. Moreover, future studies should examine the underlying neural substrates responsible for successful adaptation to unfamiliar and stressful situations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Woojae
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Myung
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Gachon University Gil Medical Center, Incheon, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: ksna13@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Kyoung-Sae
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Na
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Korea University Anam Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Byung-Joo
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Ham
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Jecheon Hospital, Jecheon, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Sei-Joong
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Chungmu Sarang Hospital, Cheonan, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun-Woong
authors.initials: HW
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Soonchunhyang University Bucheon Hospital, Bucheon, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Han-Yong
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Jung
mesh_terms: D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000473:pathology*; D001284:Atrophy / Q000473:pathology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D066128:Gray Matter / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D059906:Neuroimaging; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000473:pathology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Adaptation; Adjustment disorders; Gray matter; Magnetic resonance imaging; Prefrontal cortex