Meeting physical activity recommendations may be protective against temporal lobe atrophy in older adults at risk for Alzheimer's disease

Ryan J Dougherty; Laura D Ellingson; Stephanie A Schultz; Elizabeth A Boots; Jacob D Meyer; Jacob B Lindheimer; Stephanie Van Riper; Aaron J Stegner; Dorothy F Edwards; Jennifer M Oh; Rebecca L Koscik; Maritza N Dowling; Catherine L Gallagher; Cynthia M Carlsson; Howard A Rowley; Barbara B Bendlin; Sanjay Asthana; Bruce P Hermann; Mark A Sager; Sterling C Johnson; Ozioma C Okonkwo; Dane B Cook

doi:10.1016/j.dadm.2016.03.005

Meeting physical activity recommendations may be protective against temporal lobe atrophy in older adults at risk for Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimers Dement (Amst). 2016 Apr 9:4:14-7. doi: 10.1016/j.dadm.2016.03.005. eCollection 2016.

Authors

Ryan J Dougherty¹, Laura D Ellingson², Stephanie A Schultz³, Elizabeth A Boots³, Jacob D Meyer⁴, Jacob B Lindheimer¹, Stephanie Van Riper¹, Aaron J Stegner¹, Dorothy F Edwards⁵, Jennifer M Oh³, Rebecca L Koscik⁶, Maritza N Dowling⁷, Catherine L Gallagher⁸, Cynthia M Carlsson⁸, Howard A Rowley⁹, Barbara B Bendlin³, Sanjay Asthana⁸, Bruce P Hermann¹⁰, Mark A Sager¹¹, Sterling C Johnson³, Ozioma C Okonkwo³, Dane B Cook¹

Affiliations

¹ William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin School of Education, Madison, WI, USA.
² William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Kinesiology, Iowa State University College of Human Sciences, Ames, IA, USA.
³ Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center, William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Institute, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
⁴ William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.
⁵ Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin School of Education, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Institute, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
⁶ Wisconsin Alzheimer's Institute, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
⁷ Department of Biostatistics & Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
⁸ Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center, William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
⁹ Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
¹⁰ Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Institute, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.
¹¹ Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA; Wisconsin Alzheimer's Institute, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA.

Abstract

Introduction: Physical activity (PA) is associated with brain health in older adults. However, it is unknown whether the current physical activity recommendations (PAR) impart substantive benefit. The objective of this study was to compare temporal lobe volumes between older adults who met PAR and those who did not.

Methods: Ninety-one enrollees from the Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer's Prevention wore an accelerometer for seven consecutive days to quantify their PA behaviors and underwent a T-1 anatomic magnetic resonance imaging scan. Participants were categorized as either having met PAR or not based on the US Department of Health and Human Services recommendations of 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week.

Results: Participants who met PAR possessed significantly greater inferior (η(2) P = .050) and anterior (η(2) P = .055) temporal lobe volumes compared with those who did not (P < .05).

Discussion: Individuals at-risk for AD experience accelerated rates of brain atrophy. These results suggest that regular engagement in PA at or above PAR could attenuate this decline.

Keywords: APOE ε4; Alzheimer's disease; Dementia; Exercise; Family history; Neuroimaging.

Abstract

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