Frontal and occipital perfusion changes in dissociative identity disorder

Neuroimaging and Dissociative Disorders

“…Sar, Unal, Kiziltan, Kundakci, and Ozturk (2001) and Sar, Unal, and Ozturk (2007) studied brain perfusion in a considerable number of patients (15 in one study, 21 in the other) with DID. Regional cerebral blood flow was found to be decreased in the left and right orbitofrontal cortex of the DID patients and increased in their left (dominant) lateral temporal (Sar et al, 2001) or bilaterally in the occipital cortex (Sar et al, 2007).…”

Dissociative Identity Disorder: A Pathophysiological Phenomenon

“…Amydala controls emotions while hippocampus controls long-term memory, thus Vermetten's study does provide a good logic in explaining the pathophysiology of DID [11]. However, another MRI study demonstrated reduction in hippocampal and amygdalar volume in PTSD patients, but no considerable difference in hippocampus and amygdala of DA/DID patients and normal subjects [12]. Vermetten counter argued the study by Weniger et al by claiming that "patients with true dissociative identity disorder without PTSD essentially do not exist" [11].…”

“…Moreover, according to Sar et al regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in DID patients was reduced in the bilateral orbitofrontal cortex regions (just like attention deficit disorder), and augmented in median and superior frontal regions and occipital areas (bilaterally) [14]. Considering "decision making" and its association with the orbitofrontal cortex, Sar stated that the reduced functioning of the OFC leads in impulsivity and the expression of the new personality in DID could be a sign of impulsive behavior.…”

Prefrontal Cortex Governs Normalcy and Psychiatric Illness: Neuroimaging Evidence

“…Reduced functional connectivity within cortical limbic loop has been shown in obsessive compulsive disorder [23,24] and depression [9,17,25]. Sar and colleagues have also shown evidence of hypofunction of orbitofrontal area in dissociative identity disorder [26]. Table 1: Diminished metabolic activity in PFX shown by neuroimaging studies [2].…”