Meditation's impact on default mode network and hippocampus in mild cognitive impairment: a pilot study.
Rebecca Erwin Wells, Gloria Y Yeh, Catherine E. Kerr, Jennifer R Wolkin, Roger B Davis, Ying Tan, Rosa Spaeth, Robert B Wall, Jacquelyn N. Walsh, Ted J Kaptchuk, Daniel Z. Press, Russell S Phillips, Jian Kong
Neuroscience Letters November 27, 2013 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2013.10.001 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 14 |
| Population | Adults with mild cognitive impairment |
| Intervention | Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction |
| Duration | 8-week intervention |
| Topics | Default mode network Meditation |
| Keywords | Adas-cog Alzheimer's disease Bidmc Cdr Clinical dementia rating Hippocampus Mci Mmse Mpfc Mild cognitive impairment Mini-mental status exam Pcc Roi FMRI Medial prefrontal cortex Posterior cingulate cortex Region of interest |
| Key findings | MBSR increased functional connectivity between the posterior cingulate cortex and bilateral medial prefrontal cortex and left hippocampus, and showed trends of less bilateral hippocampal volume atrophy compared to usual care. |
Abstract
Those with high baseline stress levels are more likely to develop mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's Disease (AD). While meditation may reduce stress and alter the hippocampus and default mode network (DMN), little is known about its impact in these populations. Our objective was to conduct a "proof of concept" trial to determine whether Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) would improve DMN connectivity and reduce hippocampal atrophy among adults with MCI. 14 adults with MCI were randomized to MBSR vs. usual care and underwent resting state fMRI at baseline and follow-up. Seed based functional connectivity was applied using posterior cingulate cortex as seed. Brain morphometry analyses were performed using FreeSurfer. The results showed that after the intervention, MBSR participants had increased functional connectivity between the posterior cingulate cortex and bilateral medial prefrontal cortex and left hippocampus compared to controls. In addition, MBSR participants had trends of less bilateral hippocampal volume atrophy than control participants. These preliminary results indicate that in adults with MCI, MBSR may have a positive impact on the regions of the brain most related to MCI and AD. Further research with larger sample sizes and longer-follow-up are needed to further investigate the results from this pilot study.