Brain ventricles, <scp>CSF</scp> and cognition: a narrative review

Júnior, Mário Luciano de Mélo Silva; Diniz, Paula Rejane Beserra; Vilanova, Marcos Vinícius Souza; Basto, Gabriel Porciúncula Teixeira; Valênça, Marcelo Moraes

doi:10.1111/psyg.12839

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 120 publications

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“…Careful stereological approaches, however, have demonstrated neuronal loss in medial thalamus, mammillary bodies, pons, consistent evidence for systematic, age-related volume increases in spaces filled with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-i.e., sulci, fissures, and ventricles-that occur at the expense of gray matter and may accelerate with older age. [195][196][197][198][199][200][201] Brain gray matter structures exhibit differential patterns of aging, with convergent longitudinal data indicating an excessive vulnerability of prefrontal cortex. [202][203][204][205][206] Age-related volume deficits in thalamus and cerebellum occur at a slower rate than declines in cortical gray matter.…”

Section: Postmortem Neuropathologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Alcohol Use Disorder and Dementia: A Review

Zahr

2024

ARCR

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PURPOSE By 2040, 21.6% of Americans will be over age 65, and the population of those older than age 85 is estimated to reach 14.4 million. Although not causative, older age is a risk factor for dementia: every 5 years beyond age 65, the risk doubles; approximately one-third of those older than age 85 are diagnosed with dementia. As current alcohol consumption among older adults is significantly higher compared to previous generations, a pressing question is whether drinking alcohol increases the risk for Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia. SEARCH METHODS Databases explored included PubMed, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect. To accomplish this narrative review on the effects of alcohol consumption on dementia risk, the literature covered included clinical diagnoses, epidemiology, neuropsychology, postmortem pathology, neuroimaging and other biomarkers, and translational studies. Searches conducted between January 12 and August 1, 2023, included the following terms and combinations: “aging,” “alcoholism,” “alcohol use disorder (AUD),” “brain,” “CNS,” “dementia,” “Wernicke,” “Korsakoff,” “Alzheimer,” “vascular,” “frontotemporal,” “Lewy body,” “clinical,” “diagnosis,” “epidemiology,” “pathology,” “autopsy,” “postmortem,” “histology,” “cognitive,” “motor,” “neuropsychological,” “magnetic resonance,” “imaging,” “PET,” “ligand,” “degeneration,” “atrophy,” “translational,” “rodent,” “rat,” “mouse,” “model,” “amyloid,” “neurofibrillary tangles,” “α-synuclein,” or “presenilin.” When relevant, “species” (i.e., “humans” or “other animals”) was selected as an additional filter. Review articles were avoided when possible. SEARCH RESULTS The two terms “alcoholism” and “aging” retrieved about 1,350 papers; adding phrases—for example, “postmortem” or “magnetic resonance”—limited the number to fewer than 100 papers. Using the traditional term, “alcoholism” with “dementia” resulted in 876 citations, but using the currently accepted term “alcohol use disorder (AUD)” with “dementia” produced only 87 papers. Similarly, whereas the terms “Alzheimer’s” and “alcoholism” yielded 318 results, “Alzheimer’s” and “alcohol use disorder (AUD)” returned only 40 citations. As pertinent postmortem pathology papers were published in the 1950s and recent animal models of Alzheimer’s disease were created in the early 2000s, articles referenced span the years 1957 to 2024. In total, more than 5,000 articles were considered; about 400 are herein referenced. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS Chronic alcohol misuse accelerates brain aging and contributes to cognitive impairments, including those in the mnemonic domain. The consensus among studies from multiple disciplines, however, is that alcohol misuse can increase the risk for dementia, but not necessarily Alzheimer’s disease. Key issues to consider include the reversibility of brain damage following abstinence from chronic alcohol misuse compared to the degenerative and progressive course of ...

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Section: Postmortem Neuropathologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Alcohol Use Disorder and Dementia: A Review

Zahr

2024

ARCR

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Difficulties during delivery, brain ventricle enlargement and cognitive impairment in first episode psychosis

Costas-Carrera,

Verdolini,

Garcia-Rizo

et al. 2023

Psychol. Med.

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Background Patients with a first episode of psychosis (FEP) display clinical, cognitive, and structural brain abnormalities at illness onset. Ventricular enlargement has been identified in schizophrenia since the initial development of neuroimaging techniques. Obstetric abnormalities have been associated with an increased risk of developing psychosis but also with cognitive impairment and brain structure abnormalities. Difficulties during delivery are associated with a higher risk of birth asphyxia leading to brain structural abnormalities, such as ventriculomegaly, which has been related to cognitive disturbances. Methods We examined differences in ventricular size between 142 FEP patients and 123 healthy control participants using magnetic resonance imaging. Obstetric complications were evaluated using the Lewis–Murray scale. We examined the impact of obstetric difficulties during delivery on ventricle size as well as the possible relationship between ventricle size and cognitive impairment in both groups. Results FEP patients displayed significantly larger third ventricle size compared with healthy controls. Third ventricle enlargement was associated with diagnosis (higher volume in patients), with difficulties during delivery (higher volume in subjects with difficulties), and was highest in patients with difficulties during delivery. Verbal memory was significantly associated with third ventricle to brain ratio. Conclusions Our results suggest that difficulties during delivery might be significant contributors to the ventricular enlargement historically described in schizophrenia. Thus, obstetric complications may contribute to the development of psychosis through changes in brain architecture.

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