Facing emotions: real-time fMRI-based neurofeedback using dynamic emotional faces to modulate amygdala activity.

Introduction: Maladaptive functioning of the amygdala has been associated with impaired emotion regulation in affective disorders. Recent advances in real-time fMRI neurofeedback have successfully demonstrated the modulation of amygdala activity in healthy and psychiatric populations. In contrast to an abstract feedback representation applied in standard neurofeedback designs, we proposed a novel neurofeedback paradigm using naturalistic stimuli like human emotional faces as the feedback display where change in the facial expression intensity (from neutral to happy or from fearful to neutral) was coupled with the participant's ongoing bilateral amygdala activity.

Effectiveness of a Mindfulness-Based Mobile Application for the Treatment of Depression in Ambulatory Care: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) often experience relapses despite regular treatment with pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy. Further, long waiting lists and more demand than treatment capacity characterize ambulatory settings. Mindfulness-based interventions proved to be effective in relapse prevention in MDD.

Trichotillomania: the impact of treatment history on the outcome of an Internet-based intervention.

Background: Many patients suffering from trichotillomania (TTM) have never undergone treatment. Without treatment, TTM often presents with a chronic course. Characteristics of TTM individuals who have never been treated (untreated) remain largely unknown.

Common and differential alterations of general emotion processing in obsessive-compulsive and social anxiety disorder.

Background: Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD) are characterized by biased perception and processing of potentially threatening stimuli. A hyper-reactivity of the fear-circuit [e.g.

Affective regulation in trichotillomania before and after self-help interventions.

Objective: Trichotillomania (TTM) is characterized by recurrent hair-pulling behaviours that cause significant distress. Deficits in affective regulation have been reported in individuals with TTM. We aimed to investigate temporal stability of affective regulation in TTM individuals.