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• Clinical Article •
A study on the brain network connectivity of adolescent depression patients with childhood trauma treated with eye movement desensitization and reprocessing combined with sertraline based on rs-fMRI
LEI Hongjun  PENG Juan  ZHANG Daoen  WANG Qingjian  REN Yao  ZUO Yunfeng  ZHANG Gaofeng 

DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.01.004.


[Abstract] Objective To investigate brain functional network changes in adolescents with depression and childhood trauma after eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) combined with sertraline versus sertraline monotherapy, and evaluate the advantages of combined therapy.Materials and Methods A total of 67 adolescent patients with depression and childhood trauma were enrolled. General demographic data and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) scores were collected. Participants were divided into two groups: 33 receiving EMDR combined with sertraline and 34 receiving sertraline monotherapy. All underwent 8-week treatment. Clinical evaluations included the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD). Pre- and post-treatment resting-state and structural imaging data were acquired. Functional connectivity matrices were constructed using average blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signals from 142 regions of interest (ROI) defined by the cerebellum-removed Dosenbach atlas. Paired-sample t-tests compared intergroup differences in functional connectivity matrices. Differential edges were categorized into large-scale brain networks using the Yeo7 model, and the number of differential edges within/between seven networks was calculated.Results Both groups showed significant HAMD score reductions (combined therapy: t = 16.11, P < 0.001; monotherapy: t = 13.20, P < 0.001) and widespread brain functional connectivity changes. The combined therapy group had 49 differential ROIs and 39 differential edges (all P < 0.05), with reduced connectivity primarily within the default mode network (DMN) and ventral attention network (VAN), and increased connectivity between DMN-frontoparietal network (FPN) and DMN-dorsal attention network (DAN). The sertraline group had 32 differential ROIs and 19 differential edges (all P < 0.05), with reduced connectivity mainly within DMN and increased connectivity involving DAN.Conclusions Both treatments demonstrated effective antidepressant outcomes. Combined therapy induced enhanced DMN-FPN connectivity, suggesting improved coordination between cognitive flexibility and emotion regulation, with broader therapeutic effects compared to monotherapy.
[Keywords] adolescent depression；eye movement desensitization and reprocessing；functional magnetic resonance imaging；magnetic resonance imaging；brain functional networks；large-scale brain networks

LEI Hongjun   PENG Juan   ZHANG Daoen   WANG Qingjian   REN Yao   ZUO Yunfeng   ZHANG Gaofeng*  

Department of Imaging, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563000, China

Corresponding author: ZHANG G F, E-mail: zhanggfeng159@126.com

Conflicts of interest   None.

Received  2025-07-25
Accepted  2025-12-10
DOI: 10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.01.004
DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.01.004.

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