Orbitofrontal correlates of aggression and impulsivity in psychiatric patients

Antonucci, Ami Sheth; Gansler, David A.; Tan, Simon; Bhadelia, Rafeeque; Patz, Sam; Fulwiler, Carl

doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2005.05.016

« Previous Next »Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 147, Issue 2 , Pages 213-220, 30 October 2006

Orbitofrontal correlates of aggression and impulsivity in psychiatric patients

Ami Sheth Antonucci
- Department of Psychiatry, Neuropsychology Section, University of Michigan School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MA, USA
- Department of Psychology, Suffolk University, Boston, MA, USA
David A. Gansler
- Department of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychology, Suffolk University, Boston, MA, USA
- Lemuel Shattuck Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Corresponding author. Department of Psychology, Suffolk University, 41 Temple Street, Boston, MA 02114, USA. Tel.: +1 617 305 6397; fax: +1 617 367 2924.
Simon Tan
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Behavioral Neurology Division, Boston, MA, USA
Rafeeque Bhadelia
- Department of Radiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
Sam Patz
- Department of Radiology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
Carl Fulwiler
- Department of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
- Lemuel Shattuck Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA

Received 12 February 2004; received in revised form 25 February 2005; accepted 12 May 2005.

Abstract

The association between orbital frontal cortex (OFC) volume and aggression and impulsivity was investigated among a heterogeneous group of non-psychotic psychiatric clients. Fifteen non-psychotic subjects from two different psychiatric clinics (New England Medical Center and Lemuel Shattuck Hospital) with a variety of diagnoses were sequentially referred for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for clinical purposes. This convenience sample, clinically stable at the time of evaluation, received a standardized psychiatric diagnostic interview, aggression and impulsivity psychometrics (Barratt Impulsivity, Lifetime History of Aggression, and Buss-Perry Aggression scales), and an MRI protocol with image analysis. OFC gray matter volume, total as well as left and right, was significantly and positively associated with motor impulsivity. OFC asymmetry was associated with aggression, though total, left, and right OFC volume measurements were not. For subjects without affective disorder, there was a strong and positive association of the OFC to motor and no-planning subscales of the Barratt Impulsivity Scale. For subjects with affective disorder, there was a strong association of OFC asymmetry to both of the aggression psychometrics. Consistent with expectation, results are suggestive of OFC involvement in the neural circuitry of impulsivity and aggression. The findings suggest a dissociation of the role of the OFC in relation to aggression and impulsivity, such that the OFC may play a part in the regulation of aggressive behavior and a generative role in impulsive behavior.

Keywords: Magnetic resonance imaging, Personality, Barratt Impulsivity Scale