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De Smet S, Baeken C, Seminck N, Tilleman J, Carrette E, Vonck K, Vanderhasselt MA. Non-invasive vagal nerve stimulation enhances cognitive emotion regulation. Behav Res Ther 2021; 145:103933. [PMID: 34332299 DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2021.103933] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) has been proposed as a potential new tool in the treatment of major depressive disorder. Prior studies have demonstrated that taVNS enhances cognitive control and is able to modulate brain activity in key regions involved in cognitive emotion regulation, such as the anterior cingulate and medial prefrontal cortex, which is known to be impaired in depressed patients. Preclinical studies are lacking but may provide important insights into the working mechanisms of taVNS on cognitive emotion regulatory processes. In this between-subject study, 83 healthy subjects underwent a single-session of active taVNS or sham stimulation, after which cognitive reappraisal was examined using a computer-based cognitive emotion regulation task. Our results indicate that participants receiving active taVNS, compared to sham, were better at using cognitive reappraisal and rated their response to emotion-eliciting pictures as less intense. Yet, even though we found significant differences in behavioral measures of cognitive emotion regulation, no differences between groups were found in terms of physiological responses to the emotional stimuli. Overall, these findings suggest a positive effect of taVNS on the cognitive reappraisal of emotions, but future studies assessing objective measures of neural activity during cognitive emotion regulation following taVNS are warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie De Smet
- Department of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent, Belgium.
| | - Chris Baeken
- Department of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Psychiatry, Brussels University Hospital, Brussels, Belgium; Department of Electrical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, the Netherlands
| | - Nina Seminck
- Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent, Belgium
| | | | - Evelien Carrette
- Department of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Head and Skin, Neurology, 4 Brain, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Kristl Vonck
- Department of Head and Skin, Neurology, 4 Brain, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Marie-Anne Vanderhasselt
- Department of Head and Skin, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Ghent Experimental Psychiatry (GHEP) Lab, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
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Abstract
In a 12-month study, 363 stools of 199 premature babies nursed in a separate ward of a paediatric clinic were examined by electron microscopy and on cell culture to detect virus. Twenty-four (6.6%) were positive for rotavirus, in one winter epidemy. From four stools Echo 22 was isolated, and in six cases virus-like particles were detected by electron microscopy. These virus infections are not a major problem in newborns, requiring special care, as they are mostly symptomless or mild.
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