Social contact and brain size . . . and other stories

Abstract

Social isolation has been linked to declining cognitive function and late-life depressive symptoms. In a study of 9000 older adults (≥65 years) living in Japan who had undergone brain MRI scans, it was also associated with lower total brain volume and a higher burden of white matter lesions. Brain regions affected included those known to be involved with memory, mood, and cognition, such as the temporal lobe, hippocampus, and amygdala. (Neurology doi:10.1212/WNL.0000000000207602).