Home › Research › Hippocampus size on brain scans
Long-term declarative memory deficits in diffuse TBI: correlations with cortical thickness, white matter integrity and hippocampal volume
Palacios EM, Sala-Llonch R, Junque C, Fernandez-Espejo D, Roig T, Tormos JM, Bargallo N, Vendrell P.. Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior, 2012-03-08
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
We investigated structural brain damage in subjects who had suffered severe and diffuse traumatic brain injury (TBI), and examined its relationship with declarative memory impairment. Cortical thickness, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), and volumetric and shape data of the hippocampus were assessed in a group of 26 adults with severe TBI in the chronic stage and 22 healthy matched controls. Declarative memory was evaluated by Rey's Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT). TBI patients performed significantly worse than controls on all RAVLT measures. The group comparison for cortical thickness and DTI revealed a pattern of widespread atrophy in TBI patients. In the TBI group DTI measures correlated with cortical thickness in the prefrontal and parietal regions, including the precuneus. Declarative memory correlated with both cortical thickness and DTI measures. However, although hippocampal volume was significantly decreased in TBI patients, no correlations were found. Multiple regression analysis of all the structural measures revealed that decreases in Fractional anisotropy (FA) and thinning of the left parietal region were the best predictors of memory impairment. In conclusion, cortical thickness reductions in the left hemisphere and a lack of white matter integrity are the main contributors to long-term impairment in declarative memory among patients suffering from severe and diffuse TBI. In this study the hippocampus did not make a significant contribution to memory dysfunctions, suggesting that damage to this structure is compensated for by other regions, with the definitive sequelae being mainly explained by alterations in cortico-subcortical connectivity.
Key findings
- TBI patients performed significantly worse than controls on all RAVLT measures.
- The group comparison for cortical thickness and DTI revealed a pattern of widespread atrophy in TBI patients.
- However, although hippocampal volume was significantly decreased in TBI patients, no correlations were found.
- Multiple regression analysis of all the structural measures revealed that decreases in Fractional anisotropy (FA) and thinning of the left parietal region were the best predictors of memory impairment.
- In conclusion, cortical thickness reductions in the left hemisphere and a lack of white matter integrity are the main contributors to long-term impairment in declarative memory among patients suffering from severe and diffuse TBI.
Study details
- Participants26
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 43/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 25 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 43 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2013 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 26 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 22482692) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 25 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 25 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 43 out of 100. |
| Total | 43 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Free copy unknown: no free-copy check has an answer for this record yet. That does not mean it is paywalled.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 8 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Palacios, E. M., Sala-Llonch, R., Junque, C., Fernandez-Espejo, D., Roig, T., Tormos, J. M., et al. (2013). Long-term declarative memory deficits in diffuse TBI: correlations with cortical thickness, white matter integrity and hippocampal volume. Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2012.02.011
Vancouver
Palacios EM, Sala-Llonch R, Junque C, Fernandez-Espejo D, Roig T, Tormos JM, et al. Long-term declarative memory deficits in diffuse TBI: correlations with cortical thickness, white matter integrity and hippocampal volume. Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior. 2013. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2012.02.011. PMID: 22482692.
BibTeX
@article{palacios2013-22482692,
author = {Palacios, E. M. and Sala-Llonch, R. and Junque, C. and Fernandez-Espejo, D. and Roig, T. and Tormos, J. M. and Bargallo, N. and Vendrell, P.},
title = {{Long-term declarative memory deficits in diffuse TBI: correlations with cortical thickness, white matter integrity and hippocampal volume}},
journal = {Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior},
year = {2013},
doi = {10.1016/j.cortex.2012.02.011},
pmid = {22482692},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2012.02.011}
}