Project Summary

Maria Mouratidis, PSYD (Young Investigator 2003) of VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven Division (VA), will explore the brain mechanisms underlying compulsivity and impulsivity in subjects with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and pathological gambling (PG).  It is hypothesized that individuals with OCD/PG will demonstrate impaired performance on a cognitive test of emotional performance, and increased activation in a brain region called the anterior cingulate when receiving emotionally-laden vs. neutral information.  It is further hypothesized that subjects with PG will have lower activation in this brain region during the emotional vs. the neutral cues.  Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) will be used to quantify brain activity during the cognitive tests. 

Program Area: MULTIPLE FOCUS AREAS\OCD/Impulse Control Disorders

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