ArticleBrain and behavior2025
Morphological Brain Alterations and Network Disorganizations in Individuals With Substance Use Disorders: Differential Effects of Heroin Versus Methamphetamine.
Article in Brain and behavior, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
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.
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.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundHeroin and methamphetamine are two widely abused drugs that have profound effects on brain morphology and functioning. This study aims to (1) identify brain structural differences between heroin and methamphetamine users; (2) examine how these drugs differentially affect the topology and functional connectivity of key brain networks; and (3) characterize associations between morphological alterations and clinical symptoms, including anxiety and depression.
methodsIn this study, we collected T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging data from 26 heroin-abstinent (HA) patients, 24 methamphetamine-abstinent (MA) patients, and 32 healthy controls (HC). All participants were in early abstinence (< 6 months) to minimize acute intoxication and withdrawal confounds while capturing residual brain alterations. Four surface-based morphological features, including cortical thickness (CT), fractal dimension (FD), gyrification index (GI), and sulcal depth (SD), were analyzed, and morphological brain networks were constructed using Jensen-Shannon divergence with 210 cortical regions from the Brainnetome Atlas.
resultsBoth patient groups showed brain tissue thinning in hearing-related areas (temporal cortex) and reduced depth in visual processing regions. Heroin users specifically exhibited atrophy in somatosensory cortex regions associated with touch sensation whereas methamphetamine users demonstrated distinctive cortical folding alterations in motor cortex areas related to movement control. Network analysis revealed that heroin users had widespread connection problems affecting brain communication efficiency, while methamphetamine users showed localized damage in specific brain hubs important for memory, attention, and visual processing. Clinical correlations revealed that morphological changes were significantly associated with drug use patterns (frequency and dosage) and psychological symptoms, with anxiety scores negatively correlating with SD in heroin users and depression scores positively correlating with morphological measures in methamphetamine users.
conclusionsOur findings demonstrate distinct neurobiological signatures of heroin and methamphetamine addiction that persist during early abstinence. Heroin primarily causes widespread network disruption, while methamphetamine leads to focal hub damage. The observed associations between brain morphology and clinical symptoms indicate the practical importance of these structural alterations. These distinct patterns may inform the development of substance-specific treatment approaches.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.