Impact of chronic intranasal oxytocin administration on face expression processing in autistic children: a randomized controlled trial using fMRI.
Matthijs Moerkerke, Nicky Daniels, Stephanie Van der Donck and 6 others
PMID 39709442WHAT IT FOUND
Four weeks of daily intranasal oxytocin did not significantly change face-processing brain activity in autistic children compared to placebo.
The primary outcome was null. Only uncorrected, exploratory analyses showed reduced activity in some regions.
Key findings
01The primary comparison of oxytocin versus placebo showed no significant differences in whole-brain face processing activity.
02Within the oxytocin group alone, activity decreased from baseline to post-treatment in the left inferior occipital and left superior temporal sulcus regions.
03When comparing the oxytocin group directly to the placebo group, no significant treatment effects remained after correcting for multiple comparisons.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study used a block-design fMRI task, which may not be sensitive enough to detect subtle differences in brain activity. A parallel EEG study in the same children did find differences. The regions of interest were defined based on adult brain scans, which may not accurately reflect the brain anatomy of children. Many participants in the autism group were taking medication (e.g., for ADHD) or had comorbidities, which could influence brain activity, although medication regimens were stable. The study did not compare single-dose effects to multiple-dose effects, so it is unclear if the timing of administration relative to social tasks matters. The sample size for the treatment groups was relatively small (20 oxytocin, 24 placebo).
Declared interests
Funding was provided by KU Leuven, Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, Marguerite-Marie Delacroix foundation, Koning Boudewijnstichting, Branco Weiss Fellowship, and an Excellence of Science grant. No commercial conflicts of interest were reported in the text provided.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the decrease in brain activity within the oxytocin group as proof that the drug works. This change was not significantly different from the placebo group when tested correctly. The primary outcome was null.