BACKGROUND: Because cardiovascular (CV) risk factors have been associated with declines in cognitive functions and late life dementia, CV risk factors should also be associated with brain atrophy. OBJECTIVE: To study the association of CV risk factors with ventricular size (VS) and sulcal size (SS) in the middle-aged and young-elderly Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study cohort. METHODS: Cerebral MRI was performed on 1,812 individuals (aged 50 to 73 [mean 62.3] years, 60% women, 50% African American) with no history of stroke or TIA from the ARIC cohort at study sites in Forsyth County, NC, and Jackson, MS. Neuroradiologists rated VS and SS using a semiquantitative, 10-point scale by visual comparison with a standardized reference atlas. CV risk factors were assessed approximately 6 years prior to the MR scan. The authors performed multivariate analyses to assess the independent relationship between CV risk factors and the two measures of brain atrophy. RESULTS: Logistic regression models controlling for age, sex, race, and alcohol use found that the association between diabetes and VS is as follows: OR = 1.63, 95% CI: 1.19 to 2.24; p = 0.003. Increasing levels of fasting blood glucose also showed an association with greater VS (OR = 1.07, 95% CI: 1.03 to 1.10; p = 0.001, for each 10 mg/dL of blood glucose). No other CV risk factors were associated with greater VS or SS. CONCLUSIONS: In this middle-aged and young-elderly cohort, diabetes mellitus was associated with greater ventricular size. Mechanisms for deterioration of brain structural integrity may include microvascular, amyloidogenic, or other not-yet-defined effects of diabetes mellitus.
BACKGROUND: Because cardiovascular (CV) risk factors have been associated with declines in cognitive functions and late life dementia, CV risk factors should also be associated with brain atrophy. OBJECTIVE: To study the association of CV risk factors with ventricular size (VS) and sulcal size (SS) in the middle-aged and young-elderly Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study cohort. METHODS: Cerebral MRI was performed on 1,812 individuals (aged 50 to 73 [mean 62.3] years, 60% women, 50% African American) with no history of stroke or TIA from the ARIC cohort at study sites in Forsyth County, NC, and Jackson, MS. Neuroradiologists rated VS and SS using a semiquantitative, 10-point scale by visual comparison with a standardized reference atlas. CV risk factors were assessed approximately 6 years prior to the MR scan. The authors performed multivariate analyses to assess the independent relationship between CV risk factors and the two measures of brain atrophy. RESULTS: Logistic regression models controlling for age, sex, race, and alcohol use found that the association between diabetes and VS is as follows: OR = 1.63, 95% CI: 1.19 to 2.24; p = 0.003. Increasing levels of fasting blood glucose also showed an association with greater VS (OR = 1.07, 95% CI: 1.03 to 1.10; p = 0.001, for each 10 mg/dL of blood glucose). No other CV risk factors were associated with greater VS or SS. CONCLUSIONS: In this middle-aged and young-elderly cohort, diabetes mellitus was associated with greater ventricular size. Mechanisms for deterioration of brain structural integrity may include microvascular, amyloidogenic, or other not-yet-defined effects of diabetes mellitus.
Authors: Owen T Carmichael; Lewis H Kuller; Oscar L Lopez; Paul M Thompson; Rebecca A Dutton; Allen Lu; Sharon E Lee; Jessica Y Lee; Howard J Aizenstein; Carolyn C Meltzer; Yanxi Liu; Arthur W Toga; James T Becker Journal: Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord Date: 2007 Jan-Mar Impact factor: 2.703
Authors: Ronald A Cohen; Athena Poppas; Daniel E Forman; Karin F Hoth; Andreana P Haley; John Gunstad; Angela L Jefferson; David F Tate; Robert H Paul; Lawrence H Sweet; Mokato Ono; Beth A Jerskey; Marie Gerhard-Herman Journal: J Clin Exp Neuropsychol Date: 2008-06-16 Impact factor: 2.475
Authors: Peter T Nelson; Charles D Smith; Erin A Abner; Frederick A Schmitt; Stephen W Scheff; Gregory J Davis; Jeffrey N Keller; Gregory A Jicha; Daron Davis; Wang Wang-Xia; Adria Hartman; Douglas G Katz; William R Markesbery Journal: Biochim Biophys Acta Date: 2008-08-22
Authors: Cyrus A Raji; April J Ho; Neelroop N Parikshak; James T Becker; Oscar L Lopez; Lewis H Kuller; Xue Hua; Alex D Leow; Arthur W Toga; Paul M Thompson Journal: Hum Brain Mapp Date: 2010-03 Impact factor: 5.038
Authors: Owen T Carmichael; L H Kuller; O L Lopez; P M Thompson; R A Dutton; A Lu; S E Lee; J Y Lee; H J Aizenstein; C C Meltzer; Y Liu; A W Toga; J T Becker Journal: Neurobiol Aging Date: 2006-07-27 Impact factor: 4.673