Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31835287›Full record

SynthesisNeuroImage. Clinical2019

Systematic review and meta-analyses of neural structural and functional differences in generalized anxiety disorder and healthy controls using magnetic resonance imaging.

Tiffany A Kolesar, Elena Bilevicius, Alyssia D Wilson, Jennifer Kornelsen

Open access · goldAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in NeuroImage. Clinical, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 82 papers, 11 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
82citing papers in PubMed, 11 pooled it
7.3field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

82 citing papers in PubMed, 11 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 152 citations in OpenAlex.

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  17. Sex-Specific Associations of Irritability With Subcortical Brain Volumes.Biological psychiatry global open science · 2026
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22 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Tiffany A KolesarDepartment of Physiology and Pathophysiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
Elena BileviciusDepartment of Psychology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
Alyssia D WilsonDepartment of Internal Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada.
Jennifer KornelsenDepartment of Physiology and Pathophysiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; Department of Internal Medicine, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada; Department of Radiology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB, Canada. Electronic address: Jennifer.Kornelsen@umanitoba.ca.
University of Manitoba · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveTo compare structure, functional connectivity (FC) and task-based neural differences in subjects with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) compared to healthy controls (HC).

methodsThe Embase, Ovid Medline, PsycINFO, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched from inception until March 12, 2018. Two reviewers independently screened titles, abstracts, and full-text articles. Data were extracted from records directly contrasting GAD and HC that included structure (connectivity and local indices such as volume, etc.), FC, or task-based magnetic resonance imaging data. Meta-analyses were conducted, as applicable, using AES-SDM software.

resultsThe literature search produced 4,645 total records, of which 85 met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review. Records included structural (n = 35), FC (n = 33), and task-based (n = 42) findings. Meta-analyses were conducted on voxel-based morphometry and task-based results. DISCUSSION: The systematic review confirms and extends findings from previous reviews. Although few whole-brain resting state studies were conducted, key nodes of resting state networks have altered physiology: the hippocampus (default network), ACC and amygdala (salience network), have reduced volume, and the dlPFC (central executive network) and ACC have reduced FC with the amygdala in GAD. Nodes in the sensorimotor network are also altered with greater pre- and postcentral volume, reduced supplementary motor area volume, and reduced FC in anterior and increased FC in posterior cerebellum.

conclusionsDespite limitations due to sample size, the meta-analyses highly agree with the systematic review and provide evidence of widely distributed neural differences in subjects with GAD, compared to HC. Further research optimized for meta-analyses would greatly improve large-scale comparisons.

Indexed as

AmygdalaAnxiety DisordersCerebral CortexConnectomeMagnetic Resonance ImagingNerve NetHumansFunctional magnetic resonance imagingGeneralized anxiety disorderMeta-analysisSystematic review

Identifiers

PMID31835287
PMCPMC6879983
OpenAlexW2979504717

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.