Table 4.

Clinical studies applying MRS of GABA.^a,^b

Reference	Method	Field (T)	Volume (ml)	Expt. (min)	Region 1	Region 2+	Application	Finding	Effect %	n
[83]	JE	2.1			OCC		Epilepsy seizure control	GABA↓	13
[84]	JE	2.1	14	14	OCC		MDD	GABA↓;	52	32
[85]	JE	2.1	14		OCC		Panic Disorder	GABA↓	22	28
[36]	JE	2.1	14	20	OCC		PDD + menstrual cycle	GABA↓	30	23
[38]	JE	2.1	14	14	OCC		MDD + ECT	GABA↑	76	8
[86]	DQF	1.5	35	17	l FRO	r FRO	IGE	ns		38
[87]	DQF	1.5	35	17	OCC		IGE	GABA↑	13	30
[54]	2D-DQF	1.5	343	20	Brain		Ketogenic diet	ns		7
[73]	JE	2.1	14	21	OCC		Panic Disorder	GABA↓	24	19
[88]	JE	2.1	14	20	OCC		MDD	GABA↓	14	71
[89]	JE	3	18,30	27	VM-PFC	DD-PFC	Remitted MDD	ns		31
[24]	MP	4	5.3	38	SN	OCC		SN > OCC		11
[53]	JE	2.1	20	14	OCC		MDD + CBT	ns		15
[90]	MP	3	18	7	OCC-PAR		Recovered MDD and BD	GABA↓	9	49
[91]	JE	3	18,30	27	VM-PFC	DD-PFC	MDD	GABA↓	11	40
[92]	DQF	1.5	35				Malform’n of Cort’l Devel’t	ns	19	30
[33]	LCOSY	1.5	27	26	FWM		HIV + children	GABA↑	37	21
[93]	MP	3	12	7	FRO	OCC-PAR	rMDD	GABA↓	11	23
[94]	2DJ-MRSI	4	7 or 112	20	MRSI		Primary insomnia	GABA↓	30	32
[95]	JE	3	18,30	27	VM-PFC	DD-PFC	Panic Disorder	ns		34
[96]	2DJ-MRSI	4	4.5	48	MRSI		Bipolar Disorder	ns		24
[97]	JE	3	18	13	OCC	ACC	tr MDD	GABA↓	18	42
[98]	DQF	1.5	35	17	TL		Epilepsy + resection	ns		63
[55]	2DJ	3	18	16	ACC		MDD	ns		43
[81]	MP	3	27	13	ACC	BG	Schizophrenia	Drug effects	21	67

^aStudy designs and findings are summarized: ‘SN > OCC … 11’ should be interpreted as ‘GABA concentration in substantia nigra is greater than that in an occipital region in 11 participants’; ‘MDD … GABA↓ … 52% … 32’ should be read as ‘GABA concentration is reduced in subjects with major depressive disorder’.

^bAbbreviations: (JE, J-difference editing; DQF, double-quantum filtered; MP, MEGA-PRESS; MRSI, magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging; 2DJ, 2D J-resolved spectroscopy); (OCC, occipital; l, left; r, right; FRO, frontal; VM-PFC, ventromedial prefrontal cortex; DD-PFC, dorsomedial dorsoanterolateral prefrontal cortex; SN, substantia nigra; PAR, parietal; FWM, frontal white matter; ACC, anterior cingulate; TL, temporal lobe; BG, basal ganglia); (SSRI, selective seratonin reuptake inhibitor; PDD, pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder; MDD, major depressive disorder; ECT, electroconvulsive therapy; IGE, idiopathic generalized epilepsy; CBT, cognitive behavioural therapy; BD, bipolar disorder; tr, treatment resistant; SAD, social anxiety disorder); (ns, non-significant finding).