Emotional and personality changes following cingulotomy.

The effects of bilateral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) lesions on emotional and personality functioning were studied. Patients undergoing cingulotomy for chronic intractable pain were assessed on the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI), the Profile of Mood States (POMS), cognitive tests, and pain ratings, pre- and postsurgically. Patients with intractable pain, not treated with cingulotomy, served as controls. Cingulotomy patients experienced reductions in POMS-Tension, POMS-Anger, and MMPI Scale 7 (Psychasthenia) compared with baseline and the controls. POMS-Tension was significantly correlated with attention-intention performance. The results indicate that the ACC modulates emotional experience, related to self-perceived tension, and that there is relationship between the emotional and the attentional effects of cingulotomy.