Body mass index and brain structure in healthy children and adolescents.

Obesity is associated with cognitive dysfunction in children and adolescents, although the mechanisms underlying these deficits remain unclear. This study examined the associations between body mass index (BMI) and regional gray matter volume and white matter integrity in 120 healthy children and adolescents (6-18 years of age) who underwent magnetic resonance and diffusion tensor imaging. Bonferroni-corrected partial correlation analyses controlling for demographic and clinical characteristics revealed significant inverse associations between demographically standardized BMI values and gray matter volume of frontal (r = -0.

Body mass index and neurocognitive functioning across the adult lifespan.

Objective: Cognitive dysfunction and structural brain abnormalities have been observed in obese versus lean individuals, but with variability across age and weight groups. The current study was designed to clarify the cognitive profile of obesity by examining performance across multiple cognitive domains in adults with wide-ranging age and weight status.

Method: Participants (N = 732; 61% women; ages 18-88; BMI range 19-75) underwent assessment of cognitive functioning and relevant medical/demographic covariates.

Cognitive reserve preserves cognitive function in obese individuals.

Obesity is an established risk factor for cognitive impairment. Theories of cognitive reserve suggest that premorbid factors, such as intellectual ability, may attenuate the expression of cognitive impairment due to age or disease. The current study examined whether cognitive reserve, defined as estimated premorbid intellectual ability, moderates the relationship between obesity and cognitive function in obese adults.

Can bariatric surgery reduce risk of Alzheimer's disease?

Recent studies demonstrate that obesity is independently associated with poor neurocognitive outcomes, including cognitive impairment, increased risk for dementia, and regional alterations in brain structure. Bariatric surgery is an effective treatment for obesity and initial findings suggest that it may result in cognitive improvements. The current paper reviews and integrates recent research in this area, with a focus on potential mediators and moderators of neuropsychological outcome in bariatric surgery patients, including anesthetic and nutritional complications, and proposes novel avenues for continued study in this area.

Obesity is associated with reduced white matter integrity in otherwise healthy adults.

Existing work demonstrates that obesity is independently associated with cognitive dysfunction and macrostructural brain changes; however, little is known about the association between obesity and white matter (WM) integrity. We explore this relationship in a large cohort of otherwise healthy subjects. The present study classified 103 adult participants from the Brain Resource International Database between 21 and 86 years of age without history of neurological, medical, or psychiatric illness according to BMI (normal weight, overweight, obese) and subjected them to diffusion tensor imaging (DTI).

Improvements in cognitive function following cardiac rehabilitation for older adults with cardiovascular disease.

Cognitive impairment is common in persons with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) improves many aspects of CVD linked to cognitive impairment. The current study explored whether CR may improve cognitive function.

Reduced executive functioning is associated with poorer outcome in cardiac rehabilitation.

Patients with cardiovascular disease and cognitive impairment show reduced adherence to treatment. No study has examined whether cognitive impairment may also predict reduced benefit from cardiac rehabilitation (CR). It appears that cognitively impaired patients may exhibit poorer adherence to CR and limited gains in cardiovascular fitness and/or quality of life (QOL).

Longitudinal cognitive performance in older adults with cardiovascular disease: evidence for improvement in heart failure.

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) and particularly heart failure (HF) have been associated with cognitive impairment in cross-sectional studies, but it is unclear how cognitive impairment progresses over time in older adults with these conditions.

Objective: The aim of this study was to prospectively examine cognitive function in patients with HF versus other forms of CVD.

Method: Seventy-five older adults (aged 53-84 years) with CVD underwent Doppler echocardiogram to evaluate cardiac status and 2 administrations of the Dementia Rating Scale (DRS), a test of global cognitive functioning, 12 months apart.