Aging and alexithymia: association with reduced right rostral cingulate volume.
OBJECTIVE
Previous studies have linked alexithymia to an inability to process emotions appropriately. Older persons show changes in emotion processing and have higher alexithymia scores. Because the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is one of the regions showing earlier decline in late-life, and alexithymia seems to be related to a dysfunction in right hemisphere regions including the ACC subserving affective processes, the present study sought to test the hypothesis that reduced ACC volume accounts for the association between older age and alexithymia.


METHODS
Correlation analyses between functionally distinct ACC subregions, age and alexithymia features.


METHODS
University of Iowa.


METHODS
Twenty-four healthy volunteers aged between 24 and 79 years.


METHODS
Psychiatric and neuropsychological assessment and assessment of alexithymia using the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale. High-resolution magnetic resonance imaging, and in-house developed methods for ACC parcellation.


RESULTS
Older age directly correlated with higher overall alexithymia and reduced bilateral rostral and right dorsal ACC gray matter volume. Furthermore, higher alexithymia scores correlated with reduced right rostral ACC volume. This correlation seems to be influenced primarily by Factor 3 of the alexithymia scale measuring diversion of attention to external details in place of internal feelings.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that alexithymia in older age may be a result of structural changes in the right rostral ACC.
Paradiso
Sergio
S
Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA. sergio-paradiso@uiowa.edu
Vaidya
Jatin G
JG
McCormick
Laurie M
LM
Jones
Andria
A
Robinson
Robert G
RG
D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014888:Wechsler Scales; D055815:Young Adult