Table 1 Longitudinal neuroimaging studies of trauma exposure.
From: Neural contributors to trauma resilience: a review of longitudinal neuroimaging studies
Paper | N | Breakdown TE = trauma exposure; TEC = trauma exposed control; HC = healthy control | % Female | Age (years) M ± SD (range) | Trauma type | Time since trauma + delay to follow-up | Structural differences | Functional differences | Connectivity differences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bonne et al. [111] | 37 | All TE, 10 dev. PTSD | 51 | 30.9 (20–65) | Mixed - ED | 1 wk + 6 mo. | Hippocampal volumes (no difference) | x | x |
De Bellis et al. [112] | 18 | 9 maltreated, 9 HC | 44 | 10.6 ± 13.1 (9–14) | Childhood maltreatment | 1–5 yrs + 2 yr | Temporal lobe, amygdala and hippocampal volumes (no difference) | x | x |
Hakamata et al. [66] | 184 | 14 PTSD, 100 TEC, 70 HC | 100 | 46.6 (18–55) | Cancer-related | varied + 2 yrs | Orbitofrontal cortex (larger in resilience) | x | x |
Admon et al. [16] | 62 | 50 TE soldiers, 12 HC civilians | 50 | 18–19 | Military deployment | Baseline (pre-deployment) + 18 mo (post) | x | Hippocampal (less change in resilience) and amygdala (decreased in resilience) reactivity | vmPFC-Hippocampus (greater in resilience) |
Lanius et al. [62] | 11 | All TE | 55 | 37 | Automobile or Workplace accident | 6 or 12 wks | x | x | PCC - pgACC, PCC - rAmygdala (both weaker in resilience) |
Cardenas et al. [78] | 47 | 25 PTSD, 22 HC | 0 | 51.2 (33–60) | Military + non-military | ~33 yrs + 2 yrs | Brainstem, frontal, and temporal lobe (less atrophy in resilience) | x | x |
Daniels et al. [117] | 20 | All PTSD | 85 | 36.4 ± 12.5 | Mixed - ED | 2–4 mo | x | (Right): cuneus, lingual gyrus, inferior and middle occipital gyrus, superior temporal gyrus; (Left): putamen, pre and post-central gyrus, transverse temporal gyrus, SN, mGP (less activation in all areas associated with less cog. distortion) | x |
Dickie et al. [59] | 18 | All PTSD | 72 | 36.8 (20–60) | Mixed | varied + 6–9 mo | x | Amygdala, vmPFC (decrease in resilience), hippocampus, sgACC (increase in recovery) | x |
Lyoo et al. [89] | 66 | 30 TE, 36 HC | 62 | 26.7 (18–50) | Subway disaster | 1.42 + 2.61 + 3.85 yrs | dlPFC (increased in resilience) | x | x |
Papagni et al. [35] | 26 | All healthy | 50 | 25.2 | Stressful life events (SLEs) | Baseline + 3 mo | Left parahipocampal, right hippocampal, and bilateral ACC grey matter volumes (increased in resilience) | x | x |
van Wingen et al. [22] | 57 | 32 combat exposed, 25 HC | 5 | 24.1 | Military deployment | Baseline (pre-deployment) + 1.5 mo (post) | No significance | Amygdala & Insula (increased pre- to post-) | Amygdala - Insula, Amygdala - dACC (decreased in resilience) |
Daniels et al. [95] | 21 | All PTSD | 81 | 38.2 ± 12.1 | Mixed - ED | 2–4 mo | x | Ring lingual, fusiform, and parahippocampal gyri (negatively correlated with resilience) | x |
Daniels et al. [91] | 70 | All PTSD (N = 12 for MRI) | 59 | 36.2 ± 12.6 | mixed - ED | 2–4 mo | x | Right thalamus, inferior and middle frontal gyri (increased in resilience) | x |
Van Wingen et al. [23] | 39 | 23 deployed, 16 non-deployed soldiers | 5 | 23.7 | Military deployment | Baseline (pre-deployment) + ~1.6 mo + ~22.7 mo | x | Amygdala (returned to pre-deployment levels at long-term timepoint) | Amygdala - dACC (decreased in resilience) |
Admon et al. [17] | 24 | All combat exposed | 50 | 18 (18) | Military deployment | Baseline (pre-deployment) + 18 mo (post) | x | Amygdala (decreased in resilience) & NAcc (increased in resilience) | x |
Dickie et al. [47] | 30 | All PTSD | 67 | 36.4 (20–60) | Mixed | 6–61 wks + 22–53 wks | sgACC (increased in resilience) | x | x |
Sekiguchi et al. [27] | 42 | All TE | 21 | 21.7 | Natural disaster | ~9.1 mo pre-trauma + 3–4 mo post | Right vACC (higher pre-trauma correlated with resilience) & left OFC (higher post-trauma correlated with resilience) | x | x |
Sun et al. [49] | 60 | All TE, 21 dev. PTSD | 53 | ~38 (18–60) | motor vehicle collision | 2 days + 1 or 6 mo | ACC, vmPFC, temporal lobes, and midbrain (increased FA in resilience) | x | x |
Weems et al. [118] | 48 | 24 TE, 24 healthy | 42 | 10.96 (7–14) | Mixed | Varied + 12–18 mo | Amygdala (smaller in resilence) | x | x |
Gong et al. [75] | 150 | 50 PTSD, 50 TECs, 50 Healthy | 64 | 42.76 ± 10.6 | Natural disaster | ~1 year | Grey matter differences distinguish resilience | x | x |
McLaughlin et al. [15] | 15 | All TE | 66.7 | 16.5 (14.1–19.1) | Terrorist attack | ~1 year pre-trauma (2–60 weeks before event) | x | Amygdala (decreased in resilience) & Hippocampus (increased in resilience) | x |
Sekiguchi et al. [28] | 30 | All TE | 6 | 21.0 ± 1.6 | Natural disaster | ~9.1 mo pre-trauma + 3–4 mo post | Right anterior Cg FA (greater in resilience pre-trauma). left anterior Cg and Uf FA (less change in resilience) | x | x |
Sekiguchi et al. [37] | 25 | All TE | 24 | 21.7 ± 1.4 | Natural disaster | ~9.1 mo pre-trauma + 3–4 mo post + ~1 yr | Right anterior Cg, bilateral Uf, left SLF, and left thalamus (less change in resilience) | x | x |
Du et al. [119] | 42 | 21 TE, 21 HC | 38 | 39.1 ± 11.1 | Natural disaster | 3 wks + 2 yrs | Grey matter or white matter (no differences) | x | Frontal–limbic–striatal connectivity (recovery associated with return to baseline) |
Reynaud et al. [34] | 12 | 2 TE, 10 HC | 0 | 21.4 ± 1.7 | Not specified | Pre-exposure + 1 week | x | Right Amygdala, right OFC, right dlPFC, and BA9 (decreased in resilience) | x |
Roy et al. [63] | 81 | All combat exposed | 13.6 | 29.7 ± 7.9 | Military deployment | 2 mo post-deployment | Right SLF volume (greater in resilience) | x | Right amygdala - left superiortemporal gyrus rsFC (decreased in resilience) |
Swartz et al. [19] | 340 | All healthy | 57 | 20.8 ± 1.5 (18–26) | Mixed/stress | Baseline (anytime) | x | Bilateral amygdala reactivity (decreased in resilience) | x |
Banks et al. [81] | 24 | 13 mTBI, 11 HC | 31, 36 | 39.3, 37.6 | Mixed | 6 weeks + 4 mo | x | x | Thalamus-dorsal attention network connectivity (increased in recovery) |
Cwik et al. [79] | 19 | All TE (ASD) | 74 | 33.5 ± 12.2 | Mixed | <4 weeks | x | Right medial precuneus, lef RSC, precentral and right superior temporal gyrus reactivity (decrease in resilience); lateral, superior prefrontal, and left fusiform gyrus activation (increased in resilience) | x |
Hu et al. [86] | 34 | PTSD, TEC | 50 | 42.18 ± 12.07 (PTSD), 38.59 ± 13.2 (TEC) | Motor vehicle collision | 2 days | Anterior thalamic radiation, cortico-spinal tract, forceps minor, uncinate, inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, ILF, cingulum and SLC FA (greater in resilience) | x | x |
Ke et al. [51] | 28 | 19 acute PTSD, 9 TEC | 0 | 34.5 ± 4.7 (PTSD), 39.2 ± 5.3 (TEC) | Mining accident | 2 mo + 2 yrs | x | mPFC and inferior parietal lobules (greater in resilience pre-trauma); right middle frontal gyrus, PCC/precuneus, vermis and cerebellum activation (decreased in resilience) | x |
Li et al. [120] | 65 | 43 mTBI (22 successful recovery, 21 poor recovery), 22 HC | 45 | 35.8 ± 7.58 (mTBI recovery), 36.7 ± 7.09 (mTBI poor recovery), 36.1 ± 7.11 (HC) | Traumatic brain injury | 3 days + 10–20 days + 1–6 months | Greater FA and lower MD associated with recovery. | x | x |
Nilsen et al. [64] | 40 | 23 TE, 17 HC | 25 | 40.2 ± 12.5 (TE), 37.1 ± 9.6 (HC) | Motor vehicle collision | 3 wks |  | Occipital cortex, temporal cortex, thalamus, frontal and superior parietal area activity (greater in TE group) | Amygdala-somatosensory connectivity (increased in trauma-exposure) |
Wang et al. [46] | 44 | 21 mTBI, 23 TEC | 59 | 34.3 ± 11.2 (mTBI), 33.8 ± 11 (TEC) | Motor vehicle collision + mld Traumatic Brain Injury | 2 wks | Superior parietal gyrus (thicker in TEC compared to mTBI) | Superior parietal gyrus, medial orbiofrontal gyrus, lateral orbitofrontal gyri (more active in TECs without mTBI). SPG activity (greater in resiience) |  |
Wang et al. (46) | 38 | 16 PTSD, 22 TEC | 62, 73 | 31.6 ± 9.5 (PTSD), 34.7 ± 13.2 (TEC) | Motor vehicle collision | 2 wks + 3 mo | Left superior frontal gyrus volume (less decline in resilience) | dmPFC, vmPFC, insular cortex activity (decreased in resilience) | x |
Busso et al. [73] | 51 | 11 abused, 33 control | 60.8 | 16.96 ± 1.51 (13–20) | Childhood maltreatment | Varied | Cortical thickness: prefrontal lobe, temporal lobe (decreased in trauma-exposed); m temporal gyrus & parahippocampal gyrus (decreased in resilience) | x | x |
Gilam et al. [26] | 46 | 29 soldiers, 17 civilians | 0 | 19.86 ± 1.06 (soldiers), 19.24 ± 0.44 (civilians) | Military training | pre-trauma + 1 yr | x | vmPFC, locus coeruleus (increased in resilience) | x |
Harms et al. [113] | 54 | 29 early life stress, 25 low stress | 52 | 11.2 (9–13) | Early life stress | Varied | x | dlPFC activity (greater in resilience) | x |
Lin et al. [18] | 50 | All stress exposed | 0 | 18.86 | Military training | Pre-trauma | x | Amygdala electrical fingerprint (decreased in resilient) | x |
Mangelsdorf [50] | 22 | childbirth related stress | 100 | 28.1 ± 3.15 | Childbirth | 1 mo + 4 mo | vmPFC grey matter (higher persoal growth initiative pre-trauma predicted larger volume) | x | x |
Stevens et al. [42] | 31 | All TE | 48 | 31.9 ± 10.4 | Mixed | 1 mo + 3 mon + 6 mo + 12 mo | x | Amygdala (decreased in resilient), ventral ACC (increased in resilient) | x |
Terpstra et al. [55] | 80 | All had moderate to severe TBI | 28 | 39.4 (17–80) | Traumatic Brain Injury | 5 mo, 12 mo, 30 mo | Hippocampus (increased in resilient) | x | x |
Whittle et al. [110] | 166 | varying | 49 | Ages at each time point: 12.79 ± 0.43, 16.70 ± 0.52, 19.08 ± 0.46 | Childhood maltreatment | Varied + 4 yrs + 7 yrs | Hippocampus: CA4-DG (increased development in maltreated youth), presubiculum, CA1 (increased development associated with early- and late-onset psychopathology) | x | x |
Hu et al. [44] | 70 | 29 PTSD, 41 TEC | 55 | 37.2 (18–60) | Motor vehicle collision | 2 days | frontal-temporal cortex, left insula, left rACC (increased in resilient) | x | x |
Meng et al. [90] | 22 | All TE | 36 | 38.4 | Natural disaster | 25 days + 2 yrs | Posterior limb of internal capsule, superior and posterior corona radiata (SCR and PCR), and external capsule FA (increased in TEC), superior corona radiata FA (increased in resilent). | x | x |
Quidé et al. [54] | 45 | 10 PTSD, 15 TEC, 20 HC | 100 | 24.2 (18–53) | Sexual assault | 3 wks | Hippocampus (increased in resilient) | x | x |
Saxbe et al. [109] | 22 | Healthy but varied degrees of trauma exposure | 43 | 12.99 | Community violence | 3–5 yr | Hippocampus, Amygdala (increased in resilient) | x | Hippocampus-frontotemperal lobe (decreased in resilient) |
van Rooij et al. [57] | 27, 31 | All TE | 48, 35 | 31.5, 36.9 | Mixed | 1–2 mo | x | Hippocampus (higher in resilient) | x |
White et al. [45] | 21 | All combat exposed | 19 | 30.64 (21–44.8) | Military deployment | 2 mo + 6–12 mo | x | dACC, inferior frontal gyrus/anterior insula, inferior parietal cortex (increased in resilient) | x |
Xie et al. [52] | 44 | All TE | 70 | 32.8 (19–58) | Motor vehicle collision | 2 wks + 3 mo | Hippocampus (increased in resilient) | x | x |
Yoon et al. [61] | 59 | 30 PTSD, 29 HC | 63 | 26.7 | Fire | 1.4 yrs + 2.7 yrs + 3.9 yrs | x | x | The amygdala–insula & amygdala–PFC (strengthened, then normalized), amygdala–thalamus (normalized during recovery), amygdala–hippocampus (low across timepoints), amygdala–PFC connectivity (greater in resilient) |
Zsoldos et al. [76] | 349 | All healthy | 19 | 69.6 | Allostatic load | Varied | Grey matter density (increased in resilient) | x | x |
Ben-Zion et al. [53] | 171 | All TE | 50.8 | 34.2 (18–65) | Mixed | 1 mo + 6 mo + 14 mo | Hippocampus (increased in resilient), cavum septum pellucidum (decreased in resilient) | x | x |
Heyn et al. [74] | 48 | 27 PTSD, 21 HC | Not listed | 13.92 ± 2.44 (PTSD), 14.01 ± 2.81 (HC) | Mixed | Varied + 1 yr | Right vmPFC and bilateral vlPFC (increased in resilience), dlPFC (decreased in resilience) | x | vmPFC-amygdala, vlPFC-hippocampus (increased in resilience) |
Heyn [77] | 55 | 10 PTSD remitter, 18 PTSD nonremitter, 27 HC | 69 | 13.28 ± 3.45 (PTSD Remitter), 14.21 ± 2.46 (PTSD nonremitter), 14.16 ± 2.70 (HC) | Mixed | Varied + 1 yr | vlPFC surface area (decreased in resilience), frontal pole surface area, vmPFC thickness (increased in resilience) | x | x |
Cwik et al. [21] | 56 | 21 ASD, 17 PTSD, 18 HC | 57 | 34.76 ± 12.62 (ASD), 37.35 ± 15.56 (PTSD), 30.11 ± 12.14 (HC) | Mixed | 2 wks + 1 mo | Visual cortex, occipital, PFC (increased in resilient); middle temporal gyrus/superior temporal gyrus (reduced in resilient), amygdala and hippocampus (no significance) | x | x |
Webb et al. [65] | 48 | All TE | 72 | 33.4 | Motor vehicle collision, physical assault, mixed | 2 wks | x | x | PAG-frontal pole, PAG-posterior cingulate cortex (decreased in resilience) |
Belleau et al. [121] | 54 | 14 PTSD, 40 TEC | 65 | 33.22 (11.55) | Mixed | 2 wks | x | x | Amygdala-cerebellum and amygdala-postcentral gyrus fsFC (increased in resilient), amygdala-postcentral gyrus and amygdala-midcingulate cortex (increased in resilient during trauma recall) |
Fani et al. [122] | 30 | 31 Trauma exposed, 21 w/o Posttraumatic anedonia (PTA), 10 w/ | 67 | 33.1 ± 12.5 (no PTA), 32.9 ± 13.1 (PTA) | Mixed - ED | ~1 mo | UF tract integrity (greater in resilient) | x | x |
Koch et al. [31] | 210 | Healthy police officers at high risk for trauma exposure | 27 | 24.02 ± 5.19 (18–45) | Police training | Baseline (pre) + 16 mo | Hippocampus (larger in resilient) and Amygdala (larger with more trauma exposure) | x | x |
Quidé et al. [82] | 44 | 10 PTSD, 15 TEC, 19 control | 100 | 23 (18–53)(control), 25 (18–52)(victims) | Sexual assault | 3 wks + 6 mo | x | x | Right middle/superior occicpital gyrus (lower centrality in resilience), PCC/precuneus (reduced centrality in TEC compared to HC) |
Harnett et al. [80] | 109 | 109 TE | 70 | 35.31 ± 12.97 | mixed | 2 wks | x | x | dlPFC-threat areas (increased in resilience), inferior temporal gyrus-DMN (decreased in resilience. |
Kaldewaij et al. [41] | 185 | All TE | 24 | 23 (18-45) | Mixed - Police Work | Baseline + ~16 mo | x | anterior PFC, dorsal and medial frontal (increased in resilience), AMYG (predicted trauma exposure) | x |
Grueschow et al. [25] | 48 | All TE | 58 | 24 ± 1.99 | Medical Residents in ED | Baseline (pre-internship) | x | Locuscoeruleus (increased in resilience) | Locus coeruleus - AMYG (increased in resilience) |
van Rooij et al. [58] | 28 | All TE | 35.7 | 29.36 ± 12.46 | Mixed | 2 mo | x | hippocampus (increased in resilience) | x |
Weis et al. [56] | 208 | All TE | 55 | 33.1 ± 10.8 | Injury | 2 wks + 6 mo | hippocampal subfield volumes (no significance) | x | x |
Harnett et al. [48] | 75 | All TE | 40 | 35.24 ± 12.53 | Mixed – primarily auto accidents | 1 mo + 12 mo | UF and Fornix FA (higher in resilient). vmPFC and precuneus grey matter volume (increased in resilient) | x | x |
Stein et al. [43] | 421 | All TE with TBI | 33.5 | 38.7 ± 16.08 | Traumatic Brain Injury | 2 wks | superior frontal, rostral, and caudal ACC (larger in resilience). Principal component analysis using sfACC, rACC, cACC, and insula (predicted resilience) | x | x |
