Amygdala Research Paper

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The Activation of the Amygdala and Prefrontal Cortex in PTSD Patients
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! Previous studies have shown a correlation between fear and activity of the amygdala. Patients with damage to the amygdala show abnormal responses to fear stimuli and have impaired recognition of fear (Adolphs et al., 1999). However, could past experiences change the response to future stimuli in an undamaged amygdala? Patients suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder misinterpret situations as threatening due to past traumatic episodes. Often, patients will experience fear due to the mental reliving of a past traumatic episode. Researchers have observed that the trauma can be stored in somatic memory and affect the biological stress response. Strong emotions …show more content…
Animal research has proven that intense emotional memories are processed and stored outside the hippocampus, the area of the brain typically associated with memory. Cortical activity has been able to inhibit the expression of the strong emotional memories. The discovery has also allowed for psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy treatment of PTSD (van der Kolk, 1994). Similarly, activation of the ventral medial prefrontal cortex on animal models in fear conditioning has also shown to be useful in fear extinction. This finding has revealed a possible solution to the expulsion of a particular fear (Phelps et al., 2004). However, do traumatic experiences change the activity of the amygdala in future responses to stimuli? Understanding how non-invasive experiential episodes can affect the regulation and activity of the amygdala …show more content…
The men would fall in the age range between 20 and 40. The participants would undergo clinical and psychological examination prior to the experiment to ensure that none suffer from other disorders such as neurologic disorders, anxiety, hormone imbalances, etc. Experimenters would ensure that no participants suffer from claustrophobia as magnetic resonance imaging would be used. In addition, a skin conductance response and heart rate test would be given while possible participants listened to sounds including gun fire, thunder, helicopter, etc. to ensure the participants are able to safely handle the experiment. Only participants with traumas related to the Iraq war that have occurred within the past 5 years would be chosen for the experiment. PTSD
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