Empathy and Mood Awareness Reflected in the Resting-State Brain Metabolic Activity in the Patients with Schizophrenia and Normal Subjects

안정상태 뇌 대사 활성도에 반영된 정신분열병 환자와 정상인에서의 감정이입과 기분인식 관련 뇌 영역

  • Park, Il Ho (Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Chun, Jiwon (Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Jung, Young Chul (Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Seok, Jeong Ho (Department of Psychiatry, Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital) ;
  • Park, Hae-Jeong (Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Lee, Jong Doo (Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Yonsei University College of Medicine) ;
  • Kim, Jae-Jin (Institute of Behavioral Science in Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine)
  • 박일호 (연세대학교 의과대학 의학행동과학연구소) ;
  • 전지원 (연세대학교 의과대학 의학행동과학연구소) ;
  • 정영철 (연세대학교 의과대학 의학행동과학연구소) ;
  • 석정호 (한림대학교 의과대학 정신과학교실) ;
  • 박해정 (연세대학교 의과대학 진단방사선과학교실) ;
  • 이종두 (연세대학교 의과대학 진단방사선과학교실) ;
  • 김재진 (연세대학교 의과대학 의학행동과학연구소)
  • Published : 2007.05.31

Abstract

Objectives : Empathy has been conceptualized as the ability of emotional resonance and perspective-taking. Emotional awareness has been proposed as the basis of empathy. In this study we examined the relationship between empathy and mood awareness and their neural correlates in resting-state activity in normal controls and patients with schizophrenia. Methods : Empathy and mood awareness scale scores were compared between 29 patients with schizophrenia and 21 normal controls by voxel-based t-tests and voxel-based correlation analyses of resting-state $^{18}F$-FDG PET images. Results : Empathy and mood labeling scale scores were significantly decreased in schizophrenic patients. Mood monitoring was positively correlated with empathy score in normal controls, but not in schizophrenic patients. In normal controls, empathy was positively correlated with resting-state activities in the intraparietal sulcus and mood monitoring was positively correlated with the temporal pole, frontopolar cortex, inferior temporal gyrus, entorhinal cortex and the subgenual prefrontal cortex resting activities. The orbitofrontal cortex resting activity was positively correlated with mood monitoring-related subgenual prefrontal cortex activity in the normal controls. Patients with schizophrenia showed decreased orbitofrontal resting activity and loss of its correlations with mood monitoring-related regional activities. Conclusion : This study showed that alteration in the resting-state activity in schizophrenia may reflect dysfunctional empathy and distorted characteristic of emotional awareness. However, the resting-state activity may not reflect the relationship between emotional awareness and empathy.

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