Neuroanatomical and neurocognitive changes associated with subjective cognitive decline

Miguel Ángel Rivas-Fernández; Mónica Lindín; Montserrat Zurrón; Fernando Díaz; Cristina Lojo-Seoane; Arturo X Pereiro; Santiago Galdo-Álvarez

doi:10.3389/fmed.2023.1094799

Neuroanatomical and neurocognitive changes associated with subjective cognitive decline

Front Med (Lausanne). 2023 Feb 2:10:1094799. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2023.1094799. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Miguel Ángel Rivas-Fernández^{1

2}, Mónica Lindín^{1

2}, Montserrat Zurrón^{1

2}, Fernando Díaz^{1

2}, Cristina Lojo-Seoane^{2

3}, Arturo X Pereiro^{2

3}, Santiago Galdo-Álvarez^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
² Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, Health Research Institute of Santiago de Compostela (IDIS), Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
³ Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

Abstract

Introduction: Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD) can progress to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia and thus may represent a preclinical stage of the AD continuum. However, evidence about structural changes observed in the brain during SCD remains inconsistent.

Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study aimed to evaluate, in subjects recruited from the CompAS project, neurocognitive and neurostructural differences between a group of forty-nine control subjects and forty-nine individuals who met the diagnostic criteria for SCD and exhibited high levels of subjective cognitive complaints (SCCs). Structural magnetic resonance imaging was used to compare neuroanatomical differences in brain volume and cortical thickness between both groups.

Results: Relative to the control group, the SCD group displayed structural changes involving frontal, parietal, and medial temporal lobe regions of critical importance in AD etiology and functionally related to several cognitive domains, including executive control, attention, memory, and language.

Conclusion: Despite the absence of clinical deficits, SCD may constitute a preclinical entity with a similar (although subtle) pattern of neuroanatomical changes to that observed in individuals with amnestic MCI or AD dementia.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; brain structural changes; structural magnetic resonance imaging; subjective cognitive complaints; subjective cognitive decline (SCD).

Grants and funding

This study was supported by grants from the Spanish Government, Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (PSI2014-55316-C3-3-R; PSI2017-89389-C2-2-R; and PID2020-114521RB-C21/C22) and the Galician Government, Axudas para a Consolidación e Estruturación de Unidades de Investigación Competitivas do Sistema Universitario de Galicia: GRC (GI-1807-USC. Ref: ED431-2017/27 and ED431C-2021/04). All with ERDF/FEDER funds.