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Pavy F, Torta DM, von Leupoldt A. The effect of unpredictability on the perception of breathlessness: a narrative review. FRONTIERS IN REHABILITATION SCIENCES 2024; 4:1339072. [PMID: 38264214 PMCID: PMC10803486 DOI: 10.3389/fresc.2023.1339072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024]
Abstract
Breathlessness is an aversive bodily sensation impacting millions of people worldwide. It is often highly detrimental for patients and can lead to profound distress and suffering. Notably, unpredictable breathlessness episodes are often reported as being more severe and unpleasant than predictable episodes, but the underlying reasons have not yet been firmly established in experimental studies. This review aimed to summarize the available empirical evidence about the perception of unpredictable breathlessness in the adult population. Specifically, we examined: (1) effects of unpredictable relative to predictable episodes of breathlessness on their perceived intensity and unpleasantness, (2) potentially associated neural and psychophysiological correlates, (3) potentially related factors such as state and trait negative affectivity. Nine studies were identified and integrated in this review, all of them conducted in healthy adult participants. The main finding across studies suggested that unpredictable compared to predictable, breathlessness elicits more frequently states of high fear and distress, which may contribute to amplify the perception of unpredictable breathlessness, especially its unpleasantness. Trait negative affectivity did not seem to directly affect the perception of unpredictable breathlessness. However, it seemed to reinforce state fear and anxiety, hence possible indirect modulatory pathways through these affective states. Studies investigating neural correlates of breathlessness perception and psychophysiological measures did not show clear associations with unpredictability. We discuss the implication of these results for future research and clinical applications, which necessitate further investigations, especially in clinical samples suffering from breathlessness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabien Pavy
- Research Group Health Psychology, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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2
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Joshi SA, Aupperle RL, Khalsa SS. Interoception in Fear Learning and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. FOCUS (AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC PUBLISHING) 2023; 21:266-277. [PMID: 37404967 PMCID: PMC10316209 DOI: 10.1176/appi.focus.20230007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/06/2023]
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition characterized by sustained symptoms, including reexperiencing, hyperarousal, avoidance, and mood alterations, following exposure to a traumatic event. Although symptom presentations in PTSD are heterogeneous and incompletely understood, they likely involve interactions between neural circuits involved in memory and fear learning and multiple body systems involved in threat processing. PTSD differs from other psychiatric conditions in that it is a temporally specific disorder, triggered by a traumatic event that elicits heightened physiological arousal, and fear. Fear conditioning and fear extinction learning have been studied extensively in relation to PTSD, because of their central role in the development and maintenance of threat-related associations. Interoception, the process by which organisms sense, interpret, and integrate their internal body signals, may contribute to disrupted fear learning and to the varied symptom presentations of PTSD in humans. In this review, the authors discuss how interoceptive signals may serve as unconditioned responses to trauma that subsequently serve as conditioned stimuli, trigger avoidance and higher-order conditioning of other stimuli associated with these interoceptive signals, and constitute an important aspect of the fear learning context, thus influencing the specificity versus generalization of fear acquisition, consolidation, and extinction. The authors conclude by identifying avenues for future research to enhance understanding of PTSD and the role of interoceptive signals in fear learning and in the development, maintenance, and treatment of PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonalee A Joshi
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, Oklahoma (all authors); Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Joshi); Oxley College of Health Sciences, School of Community Medicine, University of Tulsa, Tulsa (Aupperle, Khalsa)
| | - Robin L Aupperle
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, Oklahoma (all authors); Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Joshi); Oxley College of Health Sciences, School of Community Medicine, University of Tulsa, Tulsa (Aupperle, Khalsa)
| | - Sahib S Khalsa
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, Oklahoma (all authors); Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (Joshi); Oxley College of Health Sciences, School of Community Medicine, University of Tulsa, Tulsa (Aupperle, Khalsa)
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Respiratory psychophysiology and COVID-19: A research agenda. Biol Psychol 2023; 176:108473. [PMID: 36535514 PMCID: PMC9756651 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2022.108473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2022] [Revised: 12/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
After multiple waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has become clear that the impact of SARS-CoV-2 will carry on for years to come. Acutely infected patients show a broad range of disease severity, depending on virus variant, vaccination status, age and the presence of underlying medical and physical conditions, including obesity. Additionally, a large number of patients who have been infected with the virus present with post-COVID syndrome. In September 2020, the International Society for the Advancement of Respiratory Psychophysiology organized a virtual interest meeting on 'Respiratory research in the age of COVID-19', which aimed to discuss how research in respiratory psychophysiology could contribute to a better understanding of psychophysiological interactions in COVID-19. In the resulting current paper, we propose an interdisciplinary research agenda discussing selected research questions on acute and long-term neurobiological, physiological and psychological outcomes and mechanisms related to respiration and the airways in COVID-19, as well as research questions on comorbidity and potential treatment options, such as physical rehabilitation.
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Kovalsky D, Roberts MB, Freeze B, Moss J, Jones CW, Kilgannon H, Edmondson DE, Trzeciak S, Fuller BM, Roberts BW. Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms after respiratory and cardiovascular emergencies predict risk of hospital readmission: A prospective cohort study. Acad Emerg Med 2022; 29:598-605. [PMID: 35064719 DOI: 10.1111/acem.14438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Revised: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Twenty-five percent of patients presenting to the emergency department (ED) for a respiratory or cardiovascular medical emergency develop clinically significant posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. It is possible that development of PTSD symptoms in this cohort is associated with subsequent adverse physical health events. Our objective was to test whether clinically significant PTSD symptoms 30 days postdischarge are associated with increased risk for hospital readmission within 24 months after discharge among patients presenting to the ED for a respiratory or cardiovascular emergency. METHODS This was a prospective cohort study conducted between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2020, at a U.S. academic medical center, including adult patients presenting with acute respiratory failure or cardiovascular instability requiring a potentially life-sustaining intervention in the ED. PTSD symptoms 30 days postdischarge were measured using the PTSD Checklist for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5. The primary outcome was all-cause hospital readmission over the subsequent 24 months after hospital discharge from the index ED visit. RESULTS Of the 99 patients included, 73% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 63% to 81%) had a hospital readmission within 24 months. In a multivariable Cox proportional hazards model adjusting for potential confounders (e.g., age, severity of illness during index ED visit, preexisting comorbid conditions) presence of clinically significant PTSD symptoms at 30 days was independently associated with increased risk for all-cause hospital readmission at 24 months (hazards ratio = 2.19, 95% CI = 1.30 to 3.69). These results remained statistically significant across multiple sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSIONS Hospital readmission is common among survivors of acute respiratory failure and cardiovascular instability, and PTSD symptoms 30 days postdischarge are an independent predictor of hospital readmission. Survivors of medical emergencies may warrant follow-up evaluation for PTSD symptoms, and future research is warranted to better understand the relationship between psychological trauma and hospital readmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle Kovalsky
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
| | - Michael B. Roberts
- Institutional Research and Outcomes Assessment Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Philadelphia Pennsylvania USA
| | - Brian Freeze
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
| | - Jeena Moss
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
| | - Christopher W. Jones
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
| | - Hope Kilgannon
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
| | - Donald E. Edmondson
- Department of Medicine Columbia University Medical Center New York New York USA
| | - Stephen Trzeciak
- Department of Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
| | - Brian M. Fuller
- Department of Emergency Medicine Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis Missouri USA
- Department of Anesthesiology, Division of Critical Care Medicine Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis Missouri USA
| | - Brian W. Roberts
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden New Jersey USA
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Perceptual sensitivity to sensory and affective aspects of dyspnea: Test-retest reliability and effects of fear of suffocation. Biol Psychol 2022; 169:108268. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2022.108268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 12/24/2021] [Accepted: 01/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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Krause E, Benke C, Hamm AO, Pané-Farré CA. Hold your breath: Voluntary breath-holding time predicts defensive activation to approaching internal threat. Biol Psychol 2021; 166:108196. [PMID: 34601017 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2021.108196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Revised: 09/20/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Bodily disturbances, like dyspnea, elicit responses to regain homeostasis and ensure survival. However, this life-saving function can become hyperreactive, which may lead to the emergence of psychopathology. This study investigated whether maximal voluntary breath-holding time (mvBHT), a biobehavioral marker that characterizes sensitivity to respiratory stimulation, predicts defensive mobilization to cues signaling the proximity of a mild electric shock vs. a respiratory threat (shortness of breath elicited by forced breath-holding) and the opportunity to avoid threat delivery in 60 healthy participants. While the startle reflex, a measure of defensive mobilization, generally increased with the proximity of an inevitable threat, shorter breath-holding time was specifically associated with greater startle potentiation when anticipating a respiratory threat but not an electric shock. In contrast, when both threats were avoidable, the startle reflex was comparably inhibited, irrespective of mvBHT. This study suggests that mvBHT specifically predicts hypersensitive responding to an anticipated inevitable respiratory threat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elischa Krause
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/ Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Ferdinand-Sauerbruch-Str., 17475 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Christoph Benke
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Marburg, Gutenbergstr. 18, 35037 Marburg, Germany
| | - Alfons O Hamm
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/ Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Christiane A Pané-Farré
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/ Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany; Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Marburg, Gutenbergstr. 18, 35037 Marburg, Germany.
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Icenhour A, Petrakova L, Hazzan N, Theysohn N, Merz CJ, Elsenbruch S. When gut feelings teach the brain to fear pain: Context-dependent activation of the central fear network in a novel interoceptive conditioning paradigm. Neuroimage 2021; 238:118229. [PMID: 34082119 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The relevance of contextual factors in shaping neural mechanisms underlying visceral pain-related fear learning remains elusive. However, benign interoceptive sensations, which shape patients' clinical reality, may context-dependently become conditioned predictors of impending visceral pain. In a novel context-dependent interoceptive conditioning paradigm, we elucidated the putative role of the central fear network in the acquisition and extinction of pain-related fear induced by interoceptive cues and pain-predictive contexts. In this fMRI study involving rectal distensions as a clinically-relevant model of visceroception, N = 27 healthy men and women underwent differential conditioning. During acquisition training, visceral sensations of low intensity as conditioned stimuli (CS) predicted visceral pain as unconditioned stimulus (US) in one context (Con+), or safety from pain in another context (Con-). During extinction training, interoceptive CS remained unpaired in both contexts, which were operationalized as images of different rooms presented in the MRI scanner. Successful contextual conditioning was supported by increased negative valence of Con+ compared to Con- after acquisition training, which resolved after extinction training. Although interoceptive CS were perceived as comparatively pleasant, they induced significantly greater neural activation of the amygdala, ventromedial PFC, and hippocampus when presented in Con+, while contexts alone did not elicit differential responses. During extinction training, a shift from CS to context differentiation was observed, with enhanced responses in the amygdala, ventromedial, and ventrolateral PFC to Con+ relative to Con-, whereas no CS-induced differential activation emerged. Context-dependent interoceptive conditioning can turn benign interoceptive cues into predictors of visceral pain that recruit key regions of the fear network. This first evidence expands knowledge about learning and memory mechanisms underlying interoceptive hypervigilance and maladaptive avoidance behavior, with implications for disorders of the gut-brain axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriane Icenhour
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany.
| | - Liubov Petrakova
- Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, Bochum 44801 Germany
| | - Nelly Hazzan
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany
| | - Nina Theysohn
- Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany
| | - Christian J Merz
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, Bochum 44801, Germany
| | - Sigrid Elsenbruch
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, Essen 45147, Germany; Department of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, Bochum 44801 Germany
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Moss J, Roberts MB, Shea L, Jones CW, Kilgannon H, Edmondson DE, Trzeciak S, Roberts BW. Association Between Perceived Threat and the Development of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms in Patients With Life-threatening Medical Emergencies. Acad Emerg Med 2020; 27:109-116. [PMID: 31650652 DOI: 10.1111/acem.13877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2019] [Revised: 10/05/2019] [Accepted: 10/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Our objectives were to test whether during a potentially life-threatening medical emergency, perceived threat (a patient's sense of life endangerment) in the emergency department (ED) is common and associated with the subsequent development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. METHODS This study was an ED-based prospective cohort study in an academic hospital. We included adult patients requiring acute intervention in the ED for resuscitation of a potentially life-threatening medical emergency, defined as respiratory or cardiovascular instability. We measured patient-perceived threat in the ED using a validated patient self-assessment measure (score range = 0 to 21, with higher scores indicating greater perceived threat). We performed blinded assessment of PTSD symptoms 30 days after discharge using the PTSD Checklist for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fifth Edition (PCL-5). RESULTS Ninety-nine of 113 (88%) patients completed follow-up, with 98% reporting some degree of perceived threat, median (interquartile range [IQR]) perceived threat score 12 (6 to 17), and 72% reported PTSD symptoms in relation to their ED visit (median [IQR] PCL-5 score = 7 [0 to 30]). Patients with respiratory instability had higher median (IQR) perceived threat scores (16 [9 to 18] vs. 9 [6 to 14)] and PCL-5 scores (10 [2 to 40] vs. 3 [0 to 17]) compared to patients without respiratory instability. In a multivariable linear regression model adjusting for potential confounders, greater perceived threat in the ED was independently associated with higher PCL-5 scores (β = 0.79, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.15 to 1.42). Among the individual perceived threat items, the feeling of helplessness during resuscitation had the strongest association with PCL-5 score (β = 5.24, 95% CI = 2.29 to 8.18). CONCLUSIONS Perceived threat during potentially life-threatening emergencies is common and independently associated with development of PTSD symptoms. Additional research to test whether reduction of perceived threat in the ED attenuates the development of PTSD symptoms following potentially life-threatening emergencies is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeena Moss
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
| | - Michael B. Roberts
- Institutional Research and Outcomes Assessment Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine Philadelphia PA
| | - Lisa Shea
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
| | - Christopher W. Jones
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
| | - Hope Kilgannon
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
| | | | - Stephen Trzeciak
- Department of Medicine Cooper University Health CareCooper Medical School of Rowan UniversityCamdenNJ
- Center for Humanism Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
| | - Brian W. Roberts
- Department of Emergency Medicine Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
- Center for Humanism Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Camden NJ
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Zaman J, Van de Pavert I, Van Oudenhove L, Van Diest I. The use of stimulus perception to account for variability in skin conductance responses to interoceptive stimuli. Psychophysiology 2019; 57:e13494. [PMID: 31608999 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13494] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2018] [Revised: 06/05/2019] [Accepted: 07/02/2019] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Activity of the electrodermal response system is customarily expressed in relation to physical stimulus properties and not to perceived features. In situations where the delivery of physically identical stimuli can be challenging, such as in interoception research, this variability might pose a challenge for contemporary SCR analyses. Therefore, we investigated the extent to which activity in the electrodermal response system triggered by the delivery of interoceptive stimuli is better predicted by perceived intensity rather than physical input. For this purpose, we reanalyzed data from the baseline phase of a previous study (n = 60) in which skin conductance responses (SCRs) to innocuous esophageal stimulations of high and low intensities were recorded in addition to categorizations based on their perceived intensity (high or low). Using both peak scoring and model inversion methods, we found that the inclusion of stimulus perception as a predictor of the magnitude of the SCR increased model fit. These findings suggest that the inclusion of perception is a promising avenue to better model variability in psychophysiological responses to interoceptive stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Zaman
- Department of Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Center for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Iris Van de Pavert
- Department of Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Lukas Van Oudenhove
- Laboratory for Brain-Gut Axis Studies (LaBGAS), Translational Research Centre for Gastrointestinal Disorders (TARGID), Department of Chronic Diseases, Metabolism, and Ageing, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry, University Psychiatric Centre KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ilse Van Diest
- Department of Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Van Diest I. Interoception, conditioning, and fear: The panic threesome. Psychophysiology 2019; 56:e13421. [DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2019] [Revised: 04/11/2019] [Accepted: 05/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Ilse Van Diest
- Health, Behavior & Psychopathology, Faculty of Psychology & Educational Sciences; University of Leuven; Leuven Belgium
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11
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Tan Y, Van den Bergh O, Qiu J, von Leupoldt A. The Impact of Unpredictability on Dyspnea Perception, Anxiety and Interoceptive Error Processing. Front Physiol 2019; 10:535. [PMID: 31130876 PMCID: PMC6509155 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2019] [Accepted: 04/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Dyspnea is a prevalent interoceptive sensation and the aversive cardinal symptom in many cardiorespiratory diseases as well as in mental disorders. Especially the unpredictability of the occurrence of dyspnea episodes has been suggested to be highly anxiety provoking for affected patients. Moreover, previous studies demonstrated that unpredictable exteroceptive stimuli increased self-reports and electrophysiological responses of anxiety such as the startle probe N100 as well as amplified the processing of errors as reflected by greater error-related negativity (ERN). However, studies directly examining the role of unpredictability on dyspnea perception, anxiety, and error processing are widely absent. Using high-density electroencephalography, the present study investigated whether unpredictable compared to predictable dyspnea would increase the perception of dyspnea, anxiety and interoceptive error processing. Thirty-two healthy participants performed a respiratory forced choice reaction time task to elicit an interoceptive ERN during two conditions: an unpredictable and a predictable resistive load-induced dyspnea condition. Predictability was manipulated by pairing (predictable condition) or not pairing (unpredictable condition) dyspnea with a startle tone probe. Self-reports of dyspnea and affective state as well as the startle probe N100 and interoceptive ERN were measured. The results demonstrated greater dyspnea unpleasantness in the unpredictable compared to the predictable condition. Post hoc analyses revealed that this was paralleled by greater anxiety, and greater amplitudes for the startle probe N100 and the interoceptive ERN during the unpredictable relative to the predictable condition, but only when the unpredictable condition was experienced in the first experimental block. Furthermore, higher trait-like anxiety sensitivity was associated with higher ratings for dyspnea unpleasantness and experimental state anxiety ratings. The present findings suggest that unpredictability increases the perception of dyspnea unpleasantness. This effect seems related to increased state and trait anxiety and interoceptive error processing, especially when upcoming dyspnea is particularly unpredictable, such as in early experimental phases. Future studies are required to further substantiate these findings in patients suffering from dyspnea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yafei Tan
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
- Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Jiang Qiu
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
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12
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Dynamics of defensive response mobilization during repeated terminations of exposure to increasing interoceptive threat. Int J Psychophysiol 2018; 131:44-56. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2017.09.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2017] [Revised: 09/08/2017] [Accepted: 09/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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Dynamics of Defensive Response Mobilization to Approaching External Versus Interoceptive Threat. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY: COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2018; 3:525-538. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2017.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2017] [Revised: 12/06/2017] [Accepted: 12/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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14
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DeVille DC, Kerr KL, Avery JA, Burrows K, Bodurka J, Feinstein JS, Khalsa SS, Paulus MP, Simmons WK. The Neural Bases of Interoceptive Encoding and Recall in Healthy Adults and Adults With Depression. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY. COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2018; 3:546-554. [PMID: 29724684 PMCID: PMC6415753 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2018.03.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2017] [Revised: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 03/09/2018] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Theoretical models assert that the brain's interoceptive network links external stimuli with their interoceptive consequences, thereby supporting later recall of these associations to guide the selection of healthy behaviors. If these accounts are correct, previously reported interoceptive abnormalities in major depressive disorder (MDD) should lead to altered recall of associations between external stimuli and their interoceptive (somatic) consequences. To date, the processes underlying interoceptive recall have never been experimentally investigated. METHODS We designed and implemented the Interoceptive Encoding and Recall task to compare interoceptive and exteroceptive recall among subjects with MDD (n = 24) and healthy comparison subjects (n = 21). During the encoding phase, subjects learned to pair neutral visual cues (geometric shapes) with aversive interoceptive and exteroceptive stimuli. Later, while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging, subjects were prompted to recall the stimulus associated with each shape. RESULTS Interoceptive recall, relative to exteroceptive recall, was associated with bilateral mid-to-posterior insula activation. Relative to the healthy control participants, participants with depression exhibited marked hypoactivation of the right dorsal mid-insula during interoceptive recall. CONCLUSIONS In healthy control subjects, simply recalling a stimulus associated with a previous interoceptive challenge activated a key region in the brain's interoceptive network. Although previous research has linked MDD with aberrant processing of interoceptive stimuli, the current study is the first to demonstrate that individuals with MDD exhibit decreased insula activity while recalling interoceptive memories. It is possible that insula hypoactivation during interoceptive recall may affect the representation of prior interoceptive experiences in ways that contribute to depressive symptomology and the relationship between depression and systemic health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle C DeVille
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Department of Psychology, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - Kara L Kerr
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Department of Psychology, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - Jason A Avery
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Laboratory of Brain and Cognition, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Kaiping Burrows
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - Jerzy Bodurka
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; College of Engineering, University of Oklahoma, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - Justin S Feinstein
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - Sahib S Khalsa
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - Martin P Paulus
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma
| | - W Kyle Simmons
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, Oklahoma.
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15
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Benke C, Alius MG, Hamm AO, Pané-Farré CA. Cue and context conditioning to respiratory threat: Effects of suffocation fear and implications for the etiology of panic disorder. Int J Psychophysiol 2018; 124:33-42. [PMID: 29330006 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2018.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2017] [Revised: 12/05/2017] [Accepted: 01/07/2018] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Interoceptive threats play a crucial role in the etiology of panic disorder (PD). While body sensations may become conditioned stimuli (CS) when paired with such interoceptive threats (cue conditioning), the environment in which such interoceptive threats occur may also be learned as a predictor of threat (context conditioning). Suffocation fear (SF) might facilitate these associative learning processes if threats of suffocation become relevant as unconditioned stimuli (US). To investigate whether SF affects associative learning during such respiratory threat, we used mild dyspnea as CS that predicted the occurrence of strong dyspnea (US) in one context (predictable), was not related to the occurrence of the US in another context (unpredictable) or was presented in a different context (safe) in which no US was delivered. Startle eyeblink responses and subjective reports were assessed in 34 participants during learning. Individuals reporting high SF showed a clear potentiation of the startle response during the interoceptive CS predicting the occurrence of interoceptive threat (US). Such startle potentiation was not observed when the CS remained unpaired (safe or unpredictable context). Moreover, high SF persons also showed a significant startle potentiation to the threatening context, when the CS did not predict the onset of the US. No such learning effects were observed for low SF individuals. The data support the view that defensive response mobilization can be triggered by cues but also by contexts that predict the occurrence of interoceptive threats if these threats are relevant for the individuals, supporting learning accounts for the development of PD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Benke
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Manuela G Alius
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Alfons O Hamm
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany
| | - Christiane A Pané-Farré
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Franz-Mehring-Str. 47, 17487 Greifswald, Germany.
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Zaman J, Madden VJ, Iven J, Wiech K, Weltens N, Ly HG, Vlaeyen JW, Van Oudenhove L, Van Diest I. Biased Intensity Judgements of Visceral Sensations After Learning to Fear Visceral Stimuli: A Drift Diffusion Approach. THE JOURNAL OF PAIN 2017; 18:1197-1208. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jpain.2017.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2016] [Revised: 04/05/2017] [Accepted: 04/23/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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Allard E, Canzoneri E, Adler D, Morélot-Panzini C, Bello-Ruiz J, Herbelin B, Blanke O, Similowski T. Interferences between breathing, experimental dyspnoea and bodily self-consciousness. Sci Rep 2017; 7:9990. [PMID: 28855723 PMCID: PMC5577140 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-11045-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2017] [Accepted: 08/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Dyspnoea, a subjective experience of breathing discomfort, is a most distressing symptom. It implicates complex cortical networks that partially overlap with those underlying bodily self-consciousness, the experience that the body is one's own within a given location (self-identification and self-location, respectively). Breathing as an interoceptive signal contributes to bodily self-consciousness: we predicted that inducing experimental dyspnoea would modify or disrupt this contribution. We also predicted that manipulating bodily self-consciousness with respiratory-visual stimulation would possibly attenuate dyspnoea. Twenty-five healthy volunteers were exposed to synchronous and asynchronous respiratory-visual illumination of an avatar during normal breathing and mechanically loaded breathing that elicited dyspnoea. During normal breathing, synchronous respiratory-visual stimulation induced illusory self-identification with the avatar and an illusory location of the subjects' breathing towards the avatar. This did not occur when respiratory-visual stimulation was performed during dyspnoea-inducing loaded breathing. In this condition, the affective impact of dyspnoea was attenuated by respiratory-visual stimulation, particularly when asynchronous. This study replicates and reinforces previous studies about the integration of interoceptive and exteroceptive signals in the construction of bodily self-consciousness. It confirms the existence of interferences between experimental dyspnoea and cognitive functions. It suggests that respiratory-visual stimulation should be tested as a non-pharmacological approach of dyspnoea treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Etienne Allard
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, INSERM, UMRS1158 Neurophysiologie respiratoire expérimentale et clinique, Paris, France
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Elisa Canzoneri
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Dan Adler
- Division of Pulmonary Diseases, Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Capucine Morélot-Panzini
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, INSERM, UMRS1158 Neurophysiologie respiratoire expérimentale et clinique, Paris, France
- AP-HP, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière Charles Foix, Service de Pneumologie et Réanimation Médicale (Département "R3S"), F-75013, Paris, France
| | - Javier Bello-Ruiz
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Bruno Herbelin
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Olaf Blanke
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
- Department of Neurology, Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Thomas Similowski
- Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, INSERM, UMRS1158 Neurophysiologie respiratoire expérimentale et clinique, Paris, France.
- Division of Pulmonary Diseases, Geneva University Hospital, Geneva, Switzerland.
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18
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Benke C, Hamm AO, Pané-Farré CA. When dyspnea gets worse: Suffocation fear and the dynamics of defensive respiratory responses to increasing interoceptive threat. Psychophysiology 2017; 54:1266-1283. [PMID: 28466488 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2016] [Revised: 03/18/2017] [Accepted: 03/19/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
In patients with anxiety and/or respiratory diseases, body sensations, particularly from the respiratory system, may increase in intensity and aversiveness and thus lead into defensive action (e.g., escape) or panic. The processes, however, that might contribute to the culmination of symptoms and the switch into defensive action have not been well understood yet. The current study aimed at evaluating an experimental paradigm to characterize the dynamics of defensive mobilization to body sensations increasing in intensity and aversiveness. Persons reporting low and high suffocation fear (SF; N = 69) were exposed to increasingly unpleasant feelings of dyspnea induced by inspiratory resistive loads and a breathing occlusion requiring voluntary breath holding. Respiratory responses were assessed along with subjective reports of anxiety and panic symptoms. Presentation of respiratory loads with increasing physical resistance led to increasingly unpleasant feelings of dyspnea. Twenty-eight participants terminated the exposure prematurely at least once. When dyspnea was severe, high compared to low SF persons exhibited an increased respiratory rate that was accompanied by reports of more intense panic symptoms. Premature terminations of exposure were preceded by a surge in anxiety, breathing frequency, and mouth pressure, and a decrease in tidal volume. We successfully established an experimental paradigm to assess changes in defensive responding with increasing intensity of an interoceptive threat. The current data foster our understanding of behavioral expression patterns observed in patients with anxiety and/or respiratory diseases and the processes involved in the culmination of bodily sensations and anxiety into panic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Benke
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Alfons O Hamm
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Christiane A Pané-Farré
- Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
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Lonsdorf TB, Menz MM, Andreatta M, Fullana MA, Golkar A, Haaker J, Heitland I, Hermann A, Kuhn M, Kruse O, Meir Drexler S, Meulders A, Nees F, Pittig A, Richter J, Römer S, Shiban Y, Schmitz A, Straube B, Vervliet B, Wendt J, Baas JMP, Merz CJ. Don't fear 'fear conditioning': Methodological considerations for the design and analysis of studies on human fear acquisition, extinction, and return of fear. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2017; 77:247-285. [PMID: 28263758 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.02.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 463] [Impact Index Per Article: 66.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2016] [Revised: 02/23/2017] [Accepted: 02/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The so-called 'replicability crisis' has sparked methodological discussions in many areas of science in general, and in psychology in particular. This has led to recent endeavours to promote the transparency, rigour, and ultimately, replicability of research. Originating from this zeitgeist, the challenge to discuss critical issues on terminology, design, methods, and analysis considerations in fear conditioning research is taken up by this work, which involved representatives from fourteen of the major human fear conditioning laboratories in Europe. This compendium is intended to provide a basis for the development of a common procedural and terminology framework for the field of human fear conditioning. Whenever possible, we give general recommendations. When this is not feasible, we provide evidence-based guidance for methodological decisions on study design, outcome measures, and analyses. Importantly, this work is also intended to raise awareness and initiate discussions on crucial questions with respect to data collection, processing, statistical analyses, the impact of subtle procedural changes, and data reporting specifically tailored to the research on fear conditioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tina B Lonsdorf
- University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Department of Systems Neuroscience, Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Mareike M Menz
- University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Department of Systems Neuroscience, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Marta Andreatta
- University of Würzburg, Department of Psychology, Biological Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Miguel A Fullana
- Anxiety Unit, Institute of Neuropsychiatry and Addictions, Hospital del Mar, CIBERSAM, Barcelona, Spain; IMIM (Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute), Barcelona, Spain; Department of Psychiatry, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Armita Golkar
- Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Psychology Section, Stockholm, Sweden; University of Amsterdam, Department of Clinical Psychology, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Jan Haaker
- University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Department of Systems Neuroscience, Hamburg, Germany; Karolinska Institutet, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Psychology Section, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Ivo Heitland
- Utrecht University, Department of Experimental Psychology and Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Andrea Hermann
- Justus Liebig University Giessen, Department of Psychology, Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Giessen, Germany
| | - Manuel Kuhn
- University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Department of Systems Neuroscience, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Onno Kruse
- Justus Liebig University Giessen, Department of Psychology, Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Giessen, Germany
| | - Shira Meir Drexler
- Ruhr-University Bochum, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Psychology, Bochum, Germany
| | - Ann Meulders
- KU Leuven, Health Psychology, Leuven, Belgium; Maastricht University, Research Group Behavioral Medicine, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Frauke Nees
- Heidelberg University, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Central Institute of Mental Health, Department of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Andre Pittig
- Technische Universität Dresden, Institute of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Dresden, Germany
| | - Jan Richter
- University of Greifswald, Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Sonja Römer
- Saarland University, Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Saarbrücken, Germany
| | - Youssef Shiban
- University of Regensburg, Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Anja Schmitz
- University of Regensburg, Department of Psychology, Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Benjamin Straube
- Philipps-University Marburg, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Marburg, Germany
| | - Bram Vervliet
- KU Leuven, Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, Leuven, Belgium; Center for Excellence on Generalization, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Julia Wendt
- University of Greifswald, Department of Physiological and Clinical Psychology/Psychotherapy, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Johanna M P Baas
- Utrecht University, Department of Experimental Psychology and Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Christian J Merz
- Ruhr-University Bochum, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Psychology, Bochum, Germany
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Modeling the development of panic disorder with interoceptive conditioning. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2017; 27:59-69. [PMID: 27887860 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2016.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2014] [Revised: 05/28/2016] [Accepted: 11/08/2016] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Panic disorder is characterized by the paroxysmal occurrence and fear of bodily symptoms. In recent years it has been proposed that patients "learn" to fear cardiorespiratory sensations through interoceptive conditioning. This study sought to model the initial stage of this process in healthy volunteers (N=44) using mild cardiac sensations. An additional aim was to explore whether anxiety sensitivity - a known risk factor for panic disorder - modulates such interoceptive learning. Infusions of pentagastrin and saline were used to manipulate the presence versus absence of cardiac sensations, respectively, and served as conditioned stimuli in a differential interoceptive conditioning paradigm. Inhalation of 35% CO2-enriched air served as the panicogenic, unconditioned stimulus (UCS). In half of the participants ("prepared" condition), cardiac sensations caused by pentagastrin were followed by inhalation of CO2-enriched air (penta CS+), whereas the absence of such sensations (saline) was followed by room air (saline CS-). The reversed combination ("unprepared" condition) was used in the other half of the participants. Conditioning effects showed up for self-reported UCS-expectancy, but not for skin conductance and anxiety ratings. Only participants from the prepared group learned to expect the UCS, and differential learning was impaired with higher scores on anxiety sensitivity. Expectancy learning was more easily established towards the presence compared to the absence of cardiac sensations, whereas the reverse effect was observed for safety learning. Modeling impaired discriminatory learning and the moderating effect of anxiety sensitivity provides new insight in the development of panic disorder.
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21
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Ceunen E, Zaman J, Weltens N, Sarafanova E, Arijs V, Vlaeyen JWS, Van Oudenhove L, Van Diest I. Learned Fear of Gastrointestinal Sensations in Healthy Adults. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2016; 14:1552-1558.e2. [PMID: 27155550 DOI: 10.1016/j.cgh.2016.04.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2016] [Accepted: 04/18/2016] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Gastrointestinal symptom-specific fear and anxiety are important determinants of gastrointestinal symptom perception. We studied learning of fear toward innocuous gastrointestinal sensations as a putative mechanism in the development of gastrointestinal symptom-specific fear and anxiety. METHODS Fifty-two healthy subjects (26 women) received 2 types of esophageal balloon distention at a perceptible but nonpainful intensity (conditioned stimulus [CS], the innocuous sensation) and at a painful intensity (unconditioned stimulus [US]). Subjects were assigned randomly to 1 of 2 groups. During the learning phase, the innocuous CS preceded the painful US in the experimental group (n = 26). In the control group (n = 26), on the contrary, the US never followed the CS directly. During a subsequent extinction phase, both groups received only CS distention-the painful US was no longer administered. Indexes of fear learning toward the innocuous CS distention included the skin conductance response, fear-potentiated startle (measured by the eye-blink electromyogram), and self-reported expectancy of the US. RESULTS During the learning phase, only the experimental group learned to fear the innocuous gastrointestinal CS, based on the increase in US expectancy (compared with the control group, P = .04), increased skin conductance response (compared with the control group, P = .03), and potentiated startle reflex (compared with the control group, P = .001) in response to the CS. The differences between the experimental and control groups in US expectancy and skin conductance, but not fear-potentiated startle, disappeared during the extinction phase. CONCLUSIONS Fear toward innocuous gastrointestinal sensations can be established through associative learning in healthy human beings. This may be an important mechanism in the development of fear of gastrointestinal symptoms, implicated in the pathophysiology of functional gastrointestinal disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik Ceunen
- Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jonas Zaman
- Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Nathalie Weltens
- Laboratory for Brain-Gut Axis Studies, Translational Research Center for Gastrointestinal Disorders, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ekaterina Sarafanova
- Laboratory for Brain-Gut Axis Studies, Translational Research Center for Gastrointestinal Disorders, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Vicky Arijs
- Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Johan W S Vlaeyen
- Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Lukas Van Oudenhove
- Laboratory for Brain-Gut Axis Studies, Translational Research Center for Gastrointestinal Disorders, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Juravle G, Reicherts P, Riechmann-Weinstein M, Wieser MJ, von Leupoldt A. Neural responses to affective pictures while anticipating and perceiving respiratory threat. Psychophysiology 2016; 54:182-192. [DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2016] [Accepted: 09/22/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Georgiana Juravle
- Department of Systems Neuroscience; University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf; Hamburg Germany
- ImpAct Team, French National Institute of Health and Medical Research; INSERM U1028 Lyon France
| | | | | | - Matthias J. Wieser
- Department of Psychology; University of Würzburg; Würzburg Germany
- Institute of Psychology, Erasmus University Rotterdam; Rotterdam The Netherlands
| | - Andreas von Leupoldt
- Department of Systems Neuroscience; University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf; Hamburg Germany
- Research Group Health Psychology, University of Leuven; Leuven Belgium
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Zaman J, De Peuter S, Van Diest I, Van den Bergh O, Vlaeyen JWS. Interoceptive cues predicting exteroceptive events. Int J Psychophysiol 2016; 109:100-106. [PMID: 27616473 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2016.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2016] [Revised: 07/22/2016] [Accepted: 09/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The growing body of research on interoceptive conditioning has predominantly focused on associative learning paradigms that investigated the formation of intero-interoceptive or extero-interoceptive associations. Yet, little research has explored whether interoceptive sensations can enter an intero-exteroceptive association. Therefore, in an interoceptive conditioning paradigm, healthy participants experienced a respiratory resistance for 8s, causing mild dyspnea (interoceptive conditioned stimulus, CS), that was either paired to an aversive electrocutaneous stimulus (unconditioned stimulus, US) (experimental condition, n=25), or presented in an unpaired fashion (control condition, n=25) during the acquisition phase. In a subsequent extinction phase, the US was not delivered anymore. US-expectancy, skin conductance responses (SCR), and eyeblink startle EMG were used as indices of associative learning. During acquisition, we observed stronger US expectancies during the CS as compared to the intertrial interval in the experimental group, but not in the control group, nor during extinction. In line, only in the experimental group did skin conductance responses to the CS increase across acquisition. The pattern of the eyeblink startle data did not reach statistical significance. In sum, interoceptive sensations can become associated with exteroceptive events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Zaman
- Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, box 3726, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Steven De Peuter
- Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, box 3726, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ilse Van Diest
- Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, box 3726, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Omer Van den Bergh
- Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, box 3726, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Johan W S Vlaeyen
- Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, box 3726, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Department Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, Netherlands
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Brain Responses during the Anticipation of Dyspnea. Neural Plast 2016; 2016:6434987. [PMID: 27648309 PMCID: PMC5018326 DOI: 10.1155/2016/6434987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2016] [Revised: 04/06/2016] [Accepted: 08/15/2016] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Dyspnea is common in many cardiorespiratory diseases. Already the anticipation of this aversive symptom elicits fear in many patients resulting in unfavorable health behaviors such as activity avoidance and sedentary lifestyle. This study investigated brain mechanisms underlying these anticipatory processes. We induced dyspnea using resistive-load breathing in healthy subjects during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Blocks of severe and mild dyspnea alternated, each preceded by anticipation periods. Severe dyspnea activated a network of sensorimotor, cerebellar, and limbic areas. The left insular, parietal opercular, and cerebellar cortices showed increased activation already during dyspnea anticipation. Left insular and parietal opercular cortex showed increased connectivity with right insular and anterior cingulate cortex when severe dyspnea was anticipated, while the cerebellum showed increased connectivity with the amygdala. Notably, insular activation during dyspnea perception was positively correlated with midbrain activation during anticipation. Moreover, anticipatory fear was positively correlated with anticipatory activation in right insular and anterior cingulate cortex. The results demonstrate that dyspnea anticipation activates brain areas involved in dyspnea perception. The involvement of emotion-related areas such as insula, anterior cingulate cortex, and amygdala during dyspnea anticipation most likely reflects anticipatory fear and might underlie the development of unfavorable health behaviors in patients suffering from dyspnea.
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Abstract
OBJECTIVES Interoceptive fear learning and generalization have been hypothesized to play a key role in unexplained abdominal and esophageal pain in patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders. However, there is no experimental evidence demonstrating that fear learning and generalization to visceral sensations can be established in humans and alter visceral perception. METHODS In a novel fear learning-generalization paradigm, an innocuous esophageal balloon distension served as conditioned stimulus (CS), and distensions at three different pressure levels around the pain detection threshold were used as generalization stimuli. During fear learning, the CS was paired with a painful electrical stimulus (unconditioned stimulus) in the conditioning group (n = 30), whereas in the control group (n = 30), the unconditioned stimulus was delivered alone. Before and after fear learning, visceral perception thresholds for first sensation, discomfort, and pain and visceral discrimination sensitivity were assessed. RESULTS Fear learning was established in the conditioning group only (potentiated eye-blink startle to the CS (t(464.06) = 3.17, p = .002), and fear generalization to other stimulus intensities was observed (t(469.12) = 2.97, p = .003; t(464.29) = 4.17, p < .001). The thresholds for first sensation habituated in the control group, whereas it remained constant in the conditioning group (F(1,43) = 9.77, p = .003). CONCLUSIONS These data show that fear learning using visceral stimuli induces fear generalization and influences visceral perception. These findings support the idea that in functional gastrointestinal disorder, fear learning and generalization can foster gastrointestinal-specific anxiety and contribute to visceral hypersensitivity.
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Retention of perceptual generalization of fear extinction. Int J Psychophysiol 2015; 98:520-8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2015.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2014] [Revised: 01/13/2015] [Accepted: 01/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Labrenz F, Icenhour A, Benson S, Elsenbruch S. Contingency Awareness Shapes Acquisition and Extinction of Emotional Responses in a Conditioning Model of Pain-Related Fear. Front Behav Neurosci 2015; 9:318. [PMID: 26640433 PMCID: PMC4661267 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2015.00318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2015] [Accepted: 11/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
As a fundamental learning process, fear conditioning promotes the formation of associations between predictive cues and biologically significant signals. In its application to pain, conditioning may provide important insight into mechanisms underlying pain-related fear, although knowledge especially in interoceptive pain paradigms remains scarce. Furthermore, while the influence of contingency awareness on excitatory learning is subject of ongoing debate, its role in pain-related acquisition is poorly understood and essentially unknown regarding extinction as inhibitory learning. Therefore, we addressed the impact of contingency awareness on learned emotional responses to pain- and safety-predictive cues in a combined dataset of two pain-related conditioning studies. In total, 75 healthy participants underwent differential fear acquisition, during which rectal distensions as interoceptive unconditioned stimuli (US) were repeatedly paired with a predictive visual cue (conditioned stimulus; CS+) while another cue (CS−) was presented unpaired. During extinction, both CS were presented without US. CS valence, indicating learned emotional responses, and CS-US contingencies were assessed on visual analog scales (VAS). Based on an integrative measure of contingency accuracy, a median-split was performed to compare groups with low vs. high contingency accuracy regarding learned emotional responses. To investigate predictive value of contingency accuracy, regression analyses were conducted. Highly accurate individuals revealed more pronounced negative emotional responses to CS+ and increased positive responses to CS− when compared to participants with low contingency accuracy. Following extinction, highly accurate individuals had fully extinguished pain-predictive cue properties, while exhibiting persistent positive emotional responses to safety signals. In contrast, individuals with low accuracy revealed equally positive emotional responses to both, CS+ and CS−. Contingency accuracy predicted variance in the formation of positive responses to safety cues while no predictive value was found for danger cues following acquisition and for neither cue following extinction. Our findings underscore specific roles of learned danger and safety in pain-related acquisition and extinction. Contingency accuracy appears to distinctly impact learned emotional responses to safety and danger cues, supporting aversive learning to occur independently from CS-US awareness. The interplay of cognitive and emotional factors in shaping excitatory and inhibitory pain-related learning may contribute to altered pain processing, underscoring its clinical relevance in chronic pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franziska Labrenz
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen Essen, Germany
| | - Adriane Icenhour
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen Essen, Germany
| | - Sven Benson
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen Essen, Germany
| | - Sigrid Elsenbruch
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen Essen, Germany
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Schroijen M, Pappens M, Schruers K, Van den Bergh O, Vervliet B, Van Diest I. Generalization of Fear to Respiratory Sensations. Behav Ther 2015; 46:611-26. [PMID: 26459842 DOI: 10.1016/j.beth.2015.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2014] [Revised: 05/13/2015] [Accepted: 05/14/2015] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Interoceptive fear conditioning (IFC), fear generalization and a lack of safety learning have all been hypothesized to play a role in the pathogenesis of panic disorder, but have never been examined in a single paradigm. The present study aims to investigate whether healthy participants (N=43) can learn both fear and safety to an interoceptive sensation, and whether such learning generalizes to other, similar sensations. Two intensities of inspiratory breathing impairment (induced by two pressure threshold loads of 6 and 25 cm H2O) served as interoceptive conditional stimuli (CSs) in a differential conditioning paradigm. An inspiratory occlusion was used as the unconditioned stimulus (US). Generalization was tested 24h after conditioning, using four generalization stimuli with intensities in-between CS+ and CS- (GSs: 8-10.5-14-18.5 cm H2O). Measures included US-expectancy, startle blink EMG responses, electrodermal activity and respiration. Perceptual discrimination of interoceptive CSs and GSs was explored with a discrimination task prior to acquisition and after generalization. Results indicate that differential fear learning was established for US-expectancy ratings. The group with a low intensity CS+ and a high intensity CS- showed the typical pattern of differential fear responding and a similarity-based generalization gradient. In contrast, the high intensity CS+ and low intensity CS- group showed impaired differential learning and complete generalization of fear. Our findings suggest that interoceptive fear learning and generalization are modulated by stimulus intensity and that the occurrence of discriminatory learning is closely related to fear generalization.
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Pappens M, Vandenbossche E, Van den Bergh O, Van Diest I. Interoceptive fear learning to mild breathlessness as a laboratory model for unexpected panic attacks. Front Psychol 2015; 6:1150. [PMID: 26300830 PMCID: PMC4527095 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2015] [Accepted: 07/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Fear learning is thought to play an important role in panic disorder. Benign interoceptive sensations can become predictors (conditioned stimuli - CSs) of massive fear when experienced in the context of an initial panic attack (unconditioned stimulus - US). The mere encounter of these CSs on a later moment can induce anxiety and fear, and precipitate a new panic attack. It has been suggested that fear learning to interoceptive cues would result in unpredictable panic. The present study aimed to investigate whether fear learning to an interoceptive CS is possible without declarative knowledge of the CS-US contingency. The CS consisted of mild breathlessness (or: dyspnea), the US was a suffocation experience. During acquisition, the experimental group received six presentations of mild breathlessness immediately followed by suffocation; for the control group both experiences were always separated by an intertrial interval. In the subsequent extinction phase, participants received six unreinforced presentations of the CS. Expectancy of the US was rated continuously and startle eyeblink electromyographic, skin conductance, and respiration were measured. Declarative knowledge of the CS-US relationship was also assessed with a post-experimental questionnaire. At the end of acquisition, both groups displayed the same levels of US expectancy and skin conductance in response to the CS, but the experimental group showed a fear potentiated startle eyeblink and a different respiratory response to the CS compared to the control group. Further analyses on a subgroup of CS-US unaware participants confirmed the presence of startle eyeblink conditioning in the experimental group but not in the control group. Our findings suggest that interoceptive fear learning is not dependent on declarative knowledge of the CS-US relationship. The present interoceptive fear conditioning paradigm may serve as an ecologically valid laboratory model for unexpected panic attacks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meike Pappens
- Health Psychology, University of Leuven Leuven, Belgium
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The brain acid–base homeostasis and serotonin: A perspective on the use of carbon dioxide as human and rodent experimental model of panic. Prog Neurobiol 2015; 129:58-78. [DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2015.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2014] [Revised: 04/16/2015] [Accepted: 04/20/2015] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
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Associative fear learning and perceptual discrimination: A perceptual pathway in the development of chronic pain. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2015; 51:118-25. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 79] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2014] [Revised: 12/11/2014] [Accepted: 01/09/2015] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
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Miller S, Davenport PW. Subjective ratings of prolonged inspiratory resistive loaded breathing in males and females. Psychophysiology 2015; 52:90-7. [PMID: 25195617 PMCID: PMC4768808 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2013] [Accepted: 06/10/2014] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Dyspnea and fear of suffocation are burdensome to patients with respiratory disease. Inspiratory resistive loads offer an experimental respiratory stimulus to quantify the discriminative domain of respiratory perception. Resistive (R) load magnitude estimation (ME) and subjective ratings were measured over sustained multiple breaths in healthy subjects. There was no significant group difference between the ME for Breath 1 and 20 for small R loads, but a significant gender difference for large R loads. Subjective responses of fear, fear of suffocation, displeasure, chest pressure, faintness, dizziness, fear of losing control, trembling, and tingling were significantly greater for females. These results demonstrate that ME of large resistive sustained loads elicits nonsignificant increases in ME in females, but a significant decrease in ME for males. The maintenance of ME in females co-occurs with increased aversive processing relative to males.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Miller
- University of Memphis, 100 Billy Mac Jones, Memphis, TN 38152, 901-678-2004
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Zaman J, Van den Bergh O, Fannes S, Van Diest I. Reprint of "Learning to breathe? Feedforward regulation of the inspiratory motor drive". Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2014; 204:93-8. [PMID: 25288353 DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2014.09.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Claims have been made that breathing is in part controlled by feedforward regulation. In a classical conditioning paradigm, we investigated anticipatory increases in the inspiratory motor drive as measured by inspiratory occlusion pressure (P100). In an acquisition phase, an experimental group (N = 13) received a low-intensity resistive load (5 cmH2O/l/s) for three consecutive inspirations as Conditioned Stimulus (CS), preceding a load of a stronger intensity (20 cmH2O/l/s) for three subsequent inspirations as unconditioned stimulus (US). The control group (N = 11) received the low-intensity load for six consecutive inspirations. In a post-acquisition phase both groups received the low-intensity load for six consecutive inspirations. Responses to the CS-load only differed between groups during the first acquisition trials and a strong increase in P100 during the US-loads was observed, which habituated across the experiment. Our results suggest that the disruption caused by adding low to moderate resistive loads to three consecutive inspirations results in a short-lasting anticipatory increase in inspiratory motor drive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Zaman
- Research Group on Health Psychology University of Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, Box 3726, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Omer Van den Bergh
- Research Group on Health Psychology University of Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, Box 3726, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Stien Fannes
- Research Group on Health Psychology University of Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, Box 3726, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ilse Van Diest
- Research Group on Health Psychology University of Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, Box 3726, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium.
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Pappens M, Schroijen M, Sütterlin S, Smets E, Van den Bergh O, Thayer JF, Van Diest I. Resting heart rate variability predicts safety learning and fear extinction in an interoceptive fear conditioning paradigm. PLoS One 2014; 9:e105054. [PMID: 25181542 PMCID: PMC4152223 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0105054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2014] [Accepted: 07/18/2014] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate whether interindividual differences in autonomic inhibitory control predict safety learning and fear extinction in an interoceptive fear conditioning paradigm. Data from a previously reported study (N = 40) were extended (N = 17) and re-analyzed to test whether healthy participants' resting heart rate variability (HRV) - a proxy of cardiac vagal tone - predicts learning performance. The conditioned stimulus (CS) was a slight sensation of breathlessness induced by a flow resistor, the unconditioned stimulus (US) was an aversive short-lasting suffocation experience induced by a complete occlusion of the breathing circuitry. During acquisition, the paired group received 6 paired CS-US presentations; the control group received 6 explicitly unpaired CS-US presentations. In the extinction phase, both groups were exposed to 6 CS-only presentations. Measures included startle blink EMG, skin conductance responses (SCR) and US-expectancy ratings. Resting HRV significantly predicted the startle blink EMG learning curves both during acquisition and extinction. In the unpaired group, higher levels of HRV at rest predicted safety learning to the CS during acquisition. In the paired group, higher levels of HRV were associated with better extinction. Our findings suggest that the strength or integrity of prefrontal inhibitory mechanisms involved in safety- and extinction learning can be indexed by HRV at rest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meike Pappens
- Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Stefan Sütterlin
- Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- Section of Psychology, Lillehammer University College, Lillehammer, Norway
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, Division of Surgery and Clinical Neuroscience, Oslo University Hospital - Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway
| | - Elyn Smets
- Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Julian F. Thayer
- Dept. of Psychology, Ohio State University, Columbia, Ohio, United States of America
| | - Ilse Van Diest
- Research Group on Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- * E-mail:
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Zaman J, Van den Bergh O, Fannes S, Van Diest I. Learning to breathe? Feedforward regulation of the inspiratory motor drive. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2014; 201:1-6. [DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2014.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2014] [Revised: 05/23/2014] [Accepted: 05/26/2014] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Alius MG, Pané-Farré CA, Löw A, Hamm AO. Modulation of the blink reflex and P3 component of the startle response during an interoceptive challenge. Psychophysiology 2014; 52:140-8. [DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2014] [Accepted: 06/25/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Manuela G. Alius
- Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology; University of Greifswald; Greifswald Germany
| | | | - Andreas Löw
- Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology; University of Greifswald; Greifswald Germany
| | - Alfons O. Hamm
- Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology; University of Greifswald; Greifswald Germany
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De Cort K, Hermans D, Noortman D, Arends W, Griez EJL, Schruers KRJ. The weight of cognitions in panic: the link between misinterpretations and panic attacks. PLoS One 2013; 8:e70315. [PMID: 23940559 PMCID: PMC3734098 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0070315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2013] [Accepted: 06/19/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
In cognitive theory it is hypothesized that panic attacks are provoked by catastrophic misinterpretations of bodily sensations. The aim of the present study was to investigate the ability of associated word pairs referring to catastrophic thinking (e.g. palpitations-heart attack) in producing panic attacks. Patients with PD (n = 20), patients with mixed anxiety disorders (n = 20), and a healthy control group (n = 30) participated in the present study. To enhance ecological validity we first conducted a stimulus validation experiment. Subsequently, nine suitable panic and neutral word pairs were presented in block to the participants. Anxiety levels were assessed before and after the presentation. PD patients were more anxious when reading these word pairs, compared to neutral word pairs. However, none of the participants experienced a panic attack upon reading the word pairs. From the present results it seems that catastrophic thinking is rather related to the anticipatory anxiety for panic attacks, but not necessarily with the occurrence of the panic attacks themselves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Klara De Cort
- Maastricht University, Institute for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
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Sütterlin S, Schroijen M, Constantinou E, Smets E, Van den Bergh O, Van Diest I. Breath holding duration as a measure of distress tolerance: examining its relation to measures of executive control. Front Psychol 2013; 4:483. [PMID: 23908639 PMCID: PMC3725515 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2013] [Accepted: 07/10/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent research considers distress (in)tolerance as an essential component in the development of various forms of psychopathology. A behavioral task frequently used to assess distress tolerance is the breath holding task. Although breath holding time (BHT) has been associated with behavioral outcomes related to inhibitory control (e.g., smoking cessation), the relationship among breath holding and direct measures of executive control has not yet been thoroughly examined. The present study aims to assess (a) the BHT-task's test-retest reliability in a 1-year follow-up and (b) the relationship between a series of executive function tasks and breath holding duration. One hundred and thirteen students completed an initial BHT assessment, 58 of which also completed a series of executive function tasks [the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), the Parametric Go/No-Go task and the N-back memory updating task]. A subsample of these students (N = 34) repeated the breath holding task in a second session 1 year later. Test-retest reliability of the BHT-task over a 1-year period was high (r = 0.67, p < 0.001), but none of the executive function tasks was significantly associated with BHT. The rather moderate levels of unpleasantness induced by breath holding in our sample may suggest that other processes (physiological, motivational) besides distress tolerance influence BHT. Overall, the current findings do not support the assumption of active inhibitory control in the BHT-task in a healthy sample. Our findings suggest that individual differences (e.g., in interoceptive or anxiety sensitivity) should be taken into account when examining the validity of BHT as a measure of distress tolerance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Sütterlin
- Research Unit INSIDE, University of LuxembourgLuxembourg
- Research Group on Health Psychology, University of LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
| | - Mathias Schroijen
- Research Group on Health Psychology, University of LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
| | - Elena Constantinou
- Research Group on Health Psychology, University of LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
| | - Elyn Smets
- Research Group on Health Psychology, University of LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
| | - Omer Van den Bergh
- Research Group on Health Psychology, University of LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
| | - Ilse Van Diest
- Research Group on Health Psychology, University of LeuvenLeuven, Belgium
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