Cited by 1,007Dementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchPhysical Activity and HealthMemory and Neural Mechanisms

Aerobic fitness is associated with hippocampal volume in elderly humans

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Erickson, Kirk I., Prakash, Ruchika S., Voss, Michelle W., Chaddock, Laura, Hu, Liang, Morris, Katherine S., White, Siobhan M., Wójcicki, Thomas R. +2 more·2009·Hippocampus

Abstract

Deterioration of the hippocampus occurs in elderly individuals with and without dementia, yet individual variation exists in the degree and rate of hippocampal decay. Determining the factors that influence individual variation in the magnitude and rate of hippocampal decay may help promote lifestyle changes that prevent such deterioration from taking place. Aerobic fitness and exercise are effective at preventing cortical decay and cognitive impairment in older adults and epidemiological studies suggest that physical activity can reduce the risk for developing dementia. However, the relationship between aerobic fitness and hippocampal volume in elderly humans is unknown. In this study, we investigated whether individuals with higher levels of aerobic fitness displayed greater volume of the hippocampus and better spatial memory performance than individuals with lower fitness levels. Furthermore, in exploratory analyses, we assessed whether hippocampal volume mediated the relationship between fitness and spatial memory. Using a region‐of‐interest analysis on magnetic resonance images in 165 nondemented older adults, we found a triple association such that higher fitness levels were associated with larger left and right hippocampi after controlling for age, sex, and years of education, and larger hippocampi and higher fitness levels were correlated with better spatial memory performance. Furthermore, we demonstrated that hippocampal volume partially mediated the relationship between higher fitness levels and enhanced spatial memory. Our results clearly indicate that higher levels of aerobic fitness are associated with increased hippocampal volume in older humans, which translates to better memory function. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

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  • Hippocampal volume is positively correlated with physical fitness in adults and in 10-year-old children.

    “hippocampal volume is positively correlated with physical fitness in adults (163) and children 10-yr olds (91)”

    From Lack of Exercise Is a Major Cause of Chronic Diseases (2012) · cites this paper as [163]

  • A higher level of cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with favorable structural brain changes in older adults and individuals with Alzheimer's disease.

    “(iii) favorable structural brain changes in older adults (Colcombe et al., 2003; Erickson et al., 2009; Szabo et al., 2011; Bugg et al., 2012) and individuals with Alzheimer’s disease (Burns et al., 2008; Honea et al., 2009; Vidoni et al., 2012).”

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. Institute of Medicine of the National Academies Retooling for an Aging America: Building the health care workforce. Committee on the Future Health Care Workforce for Older Americans 2008 Washington D.C. The National Academic Press 25009893
  2. Patenaude B Smith SM Kennedy D Jenkinson M FIRST-FMRIB’s integrated registration and segmentation tool Human Brain Mapping Conference, 2007 2007a
  3. Patenaude B Smith SM Kennedy D Jenkinson M Bayesian shape and appearance models Technical report TR07BP1, FMRIB Center 2007b University of Oxford

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Authors
Erickson, K. I., Prakash, R. S., Voss, M. W., Chaddock, L., Hu, L., Morris, K. S., White, S. M., Wójcicki, T. R., McAuley, E., & Kramer, A. F.
Affiliations
  • University of Pittsburgh (US)
  • University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US)
Corresponding author
Erickson, Kirk I.
Venue
Hippocampus
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2009-01-02
Volume
19
Issue
10
Pages
1030-1039
ISSN
  • 1050-9631 (ISSN-L)
  • 1098-1063
OpenAlex
W2142771923
Cited by
1,007
References
69
Citations by year
2026: 31 · 2025: 40 · 2024: 36 · 2023: 34 · 2022: 52 · 2021: 52 · 2020: 78 · 2019: 80 · 2018: 67 · 2017: 74 · 2016: 73 · 2015: 77 · 2014: 81 · 2013: 59 · 2012: 66
FWCI
34.73
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Hippocampus (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institute on Aging (R01 AG 25667, R01 AG25302, R01AG025667, R01AG025302, R37AG025667, P30AG024827)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
Keywords
cardiorespiratory fitness, hippocampal volume, older adults, spatial memory, dementia risk, physical activity, mediation, hippocampal atrophy, cognitive aging
MeSH terms
Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Aging, Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena, Female, Hippocampus, Humans, Functional Laterality, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Memory, Middle Aged, Neuropsychological Tests, Organ Size, Reaction Time, Space Perception, Exercise

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