Modulation of the startle reflex across time by unpleasant pictures distinguishes dysphoric from non-dysphoric women

While several investigators have examined differences in affective startle modulation between individuals with and without Major Depressive Disorder, fewer researchers have evaluated the time course of this response, particularly in dysphoric individuals. The purpose of this study was to evaluate emotion modulation of the startle reflex during and after the presentation of affective pictures in dysphoric and non-dysphoric women. Dysphoric subjects showed attenuated startle for unpleasant compared to neutral pictures 1.5 s post-stimulus onset relative to non-dysphoric subjects and potentiated startle for unpleasant compared to neutral pictures 3 s post-stimulus offset. These findings extend the literature on the time course of affective startle modulation in dysphoria, and mirror results of studies in which other psychophysiological responses were examined in this population with regard to negative emotion.

► 38 dysphoric or non-dysphoric individuals completed an affective startle paradigm.
► Acoustic startle probes occurred during and after presentation of IAPS pictures.
► Dysphoric subjects showed attenuation of startle reflex early during presentation of unpleasant pictures.
► Dysphoric subjects showed potentiated startle after offset of unpleasant pictures.
► Controls showed potentiated startle during, but not after, unpleasant picture presentation.