Duration of T2D Negatively Linked to Mean Cortical Thickness

WEDNESDAY, Aug. 16, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Pima American Indians with longer duration of type 2 diabetes (T2D) have decreased cortical thickness and gray matter volumes and increased volume of white matter hyperintensity, according to a study published online July 30 in the Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology.

Evan L. Reynolds, Ph.D., from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study to examine associations between cognition and magnetic resonance imaging-derived brain outcomes with obesity, diabetes duration, and metabolic risk factors among 51 Pima American Indians with T2D for a mean of 20.1 years.

The researchers found that compared with normative data, study participants had similar cognition (National Institutes of Health Toolbox Cognition Battery composite, 45.3). Associations were seen for T2D duration, but not other metabolic risk factors, with decreased cortical thickness, gray matter volume, and increased white matter hyperintensity volume.

"This study is critical to our understanding of how diabetes affects brain health and lays the groundwork for a larger, longitudinal study addressing how persons with diabetes can maintain a healthy brain," senior author Eva Feldman, M.D., Ph.D., also of the University of Michigan, said in a statement. "Regardless of the underlying mechanisms, preventing these conditions in people with type 2 diabetes is critical to maintaining brain health. Educating the public on the risks that diabetes poses to preserving a healthy brain is part of our mission."

Two authors disclosed ties to industry.

Abstract/Full Text