Cortical haemodynamic response during the verbal fluency task in patients with bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder: a preliminary functional near-infrared spectroscopy study

Abstract

Background Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is an emerging neuroimaging modality that provides a direct and quantitative assessment of cortical haemodynamic response during a cognitive task. It may be used to identify neurophysiological differences between psychiatric disorders with overlapping symptoms, such as bipolar disorder (BD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD). Hence, this preliminary study aimed to compare the cerebral haemodynamic function of healthy controls (HC), patients with BD and patients with BPD. Methods Twenty-seven participants (9 HCs, 9 patients with BD and 9 patients with BPD) matched for age, gender, ethnicity and education were recruited. Relative oxy-haemoglobin and deoxy-haemoglobin changes in the frontotemporal cortex was monitored with a 52-channel fNIRS system during a verbal fluency task (VFT). VFT performance, clinical history and symptom severity were also noted. Results Compared to HCs, both patient groups had lower mean oxy-haemoglobin in the frontotemporal cortex during the VFT. Moreover, mean oxy-haemoglobin in the left inferior frontal region is markedly lower in patients with BPD compared to patients with BD. Task performance, clinical history and symptom severity were not associated with mean oxy-haemoglobin levels. Conclusions Prefrontal cortex activity is disrupted in patients with BD and BPD, but it is more extensive in BPD. These results provide further neurophysiological evidence for the separation of BPD from the bipolar spectrum. fNIRS could be a potential tool for assessing the frontal lobe function of patients who present with symptoms that are common to BD and BPD.

Deficits of social cognition in bipolar disorder: Systematic review and meta‐analysis

“…It is separately reported that pro‐cognitive strategies in major depressive disorder resulted in improved overall functioning 50,51 . Additional research is required to parse the underlying neurobiological substrates that subserve measures of cognition 52,53 . Although preliminary evidence exists 54,55 for treatments that can improve aspects of social cognition, there is a need for scalable, cost‐effective intervention for social cognition in BD that can be implemented at the point of care.…”

Therapeutic Interventions to Mitigate Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oxidative Stress–Induced Damage in Patients with Bipolar Disorder

“…Bipolar disorder (BD) is a chronic mental illness characterized by an alternation between mania or hypomania and depression [1][2][3][4]. It is often associated with impaired functionality [5,6].…”

Effects of dialectical behaviour therapy on reducing self‐harming behaviours and negative emotions in patients with borderline personality disorder: A meta‐analysis

“…A WHO epidemiological survey found that the prevalence of BPD in the general population was 1.5% (Huang et al, 2009), while the prevalence of BPD accounted for about 25% among inpatients with mental disorders (Bozzatello et al, 2020). Clinical signs include affect dysregulation, impulsive aggression, repeated self-harm and chronic suicidal tendencies (Keng et al, 2019;Lieb et al, 2004). Husain et al(Husain et al, 2021 found widespread disruption of prefrontal cortex activity in patients with BPD through functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), which may contribute to their unstable emotion and impulsivity.…”