The areas of the brain affected by generalised anxiety disorder

During passive activity, patients with generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) exhibit increased metabolic rates in the occipital, temporal and frontal lobes and in the cerebellum and thalamus compared with healthy controls. Increased metabolic activity in the basal ganglia has also been reported in patients with GAD during vigilance tasks. These finding suggest that there may be hyperactive brain circuits in GAD.

Click the image to view high resolution version

References

J Clin Psychiatry 2001;62(Suppl. 11):22–27.