Emotional reactivity in mesial temporal lobe epilepsy: A pilot study

Purpose: Emotional reactivity (ER) is the early rapidly evoked response to a salient emotional stimulus which influences an individual's coping mechanisms, eliciting adaptive responses. We investigated ER in patients with mesial temporal lobe epilepsy (MTLE) in order to obtain an emotion-processing measure that can be related to behavioral regulation. Methods: We measured ER in twelve patients with (MTLE) using the International Affective Picture System (IAPS), the most widely employed instrument to measure ER, and compared their results with those of a matched sample of healthy subjects. Ninety color pictures depicting events with different kinds of affective valence (pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral) were shown to the patients. Unpleasant and pleasant pictures were also distinguished depending on whether or not they involved social human conditions. The ER was rated on the basis of valence and arousal. Results: Patients with MTLE showed higher mean arousal and valence ratings than controls for neutral and socially pleasant pictures. A higher valence for unpleasant pictures and a trend toward significantly higher arousal and valence for pleasant pictures were also recorded. Conclusions: Patients with MTLE seem to feel the environment in a more sensitive and positive way compared with controls, likely in relationship with social functioning alterations.