RESUMEN
[Objective]To observe the effect of serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) venlafaxine on cortex language area excitability in healthy subjects by means of functional MRI (fMRI) and behavioral language tests.[Methods]In a randomized,double-blind,crossover study,8 right-handed healthy subjects received 75 mg daily of either venlafaxine or placebo over a period of 7 d separated by a period of 3 d washing-out.Parallel behavioral language tests,including fluency of spontaneous language (i min) and the naming testing,were performed before treatment,7 and 18 d after treatment in each volunteer.The repeated fMRI examination was employed to exam the activation of the brain when performing the tasks (animal naming and tool naming).The test [Results] were analyzed with SPSS13.0 software using the cross-analysis of two-srage test.[Results] Naming scores in velafaxine session was significantly higher than that in placebo session (P＜0.05);and the performance of spontaneous language frequency in venlafaxin session was significantly higher than that in placebo session (P＜0.05).As compared with the administration of placebo,the fMRI data suggested that venlafaxine induced hyperactivation on the superior part of the left middle front gyri (BA44/45) and the premotor area (PMA) (BA6) in the left-sided brain;the hyperactivation of these areas were positively correlated with the naming scores (animal naming:r=0.972,P-=0.000;tool naming:r=0.944,P=0.000).[Conclusion] In healthy subjects,venlafaxine for 7 d might promote the output of phonetic cortex on frontal lobe of language dominant hemisphere and the ability of language behavior.