Altered brain activity in healthy seniors: what does it mean?

Age-related performance decreases are frequently observed on various memory tasks. Recent brain imaging studies using positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) suggest a link between altered patterns of brain activity in older adults and memory performance. Convergent neuroimaging evidence shows that older adults have decreased activity in multiple regions important for memory tasks. Such relative under-activation in older adults is likely related to age-related reductions in cognitive performance. Age-comparative neuroimaging studies have also provided convincing support for regional over-activation by older adults. Such findings indicate that the older brain can re-organize to better cope with cognitive and other challenges. Although over-activation may play a compensatory role when cognitive decline is limited, under-activation seems to be the typical pattern when cognitive impairment is in a more progressed state. This pattern of age-related changes suggests that compensation through over-activation is restricted to the early stages of cognitive impairment in aging.