Functional MRI evidence for a role of ventral prefrontal cortex in tinnitus.

ABSTRACT: It has long been known that subjective tinnitus, a constant or intermittent phantom sound perceived by 10 to 15% of the adult population, is not a purely auditory phenomenon but is also tied to limbic-related brain regions. Supporting evidence comes from data indicating that stress and emotion can modulate tinnitus, and from brain imaging studies showing functional and anatomical differences in limbic-related brain regions of tinnitus patients and controls. Recent studies from our lab revealed altered blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) responses to stimulation at the tinnitus frequency in the ventral striatum (specifically, the nucleus accumbens) and gray-matter reductions (i.e., anatomical changes) in ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), of tinnitus patients compared to controls. The

SUBMITTER: Seydell-Greenwald A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3489972 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature