Regional gray matter changes are associated with cognitive deficits in remitted geriatric depression: an optimized voxel-based morphometry study.
BACKGROUND
We aimed to investigate structural abnormalities in first-episode remitted geriatric depression (RGD) with optimized voxel-based morphometry (VBM) in closely matched patients and healthy control subjects and examine the relationship of performances on neuropsychological tests with regional gray matter volumes.


METHODS
Nineteen subjects with first-episode RGD and 16 well-matched healthy control subjects were recruited for this study, and neuropsychological tests and magnetic resonance imaging were conducted on the subjects. The differences in regional gray matter volume were determined between these two groups by optimized VBM.


RESULTS
The volumes of right superior frontal cortex, left postcentral cortex, and right middle temporal gyrus were significantly smaller in patients with RGD relative to healthy control subjects. However, patients with RGD had larger left cingulate gyrus volume compared with healthy control subjects. There was a significant negative correlation between left cingulate gyrus volume and Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test delayed recall raw score in patients with RGD.


CONCLUSIONS
These results reveal that RGD is associated with gray matter changes of certain brain regions hypothesized to influence cognition and might thus be involved in the psychopathology and pathophysiology of cognitive impairment in RGD.
School of Clinical Medicine, Southeast University, Nanjing, PR China.
Yonggui
Y
Yuan
Wanlin
W
Zhu
Zhijun
Z
Zhang
Feng
F
Bai
Hui
H
Yu
Yongmei
Y
Shi
Yun
Y
Qian
Wen
W
Liu
Tianzi
T
Jiang
Jiayong
J
You
Zhening
Z
Liu
D000368:Aged; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012074:Remission Induction; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*