"Hippocampal volume" refers to the size or amount of a part of the brain called the hippocampus. It is a measurement used to evaluate the health and functioning of this important brain region.
Full definition
White's own studies show that veterans who were most exposed to these substances showed reductions in white matter, and another 2010 study found
smaller hippocampal volumes in the vets, much like the changes seen in victims of the 1995 sarin gas attack in Tokyo.
Lindauer RJL, Vlieger EJ, Jalink M, Olff M, Carlier IVE, Majoie CBLM, den Heeten GJ, Gersons BPR, Effects of psychotherapy
on hippocampal volume in out - patients with post-traumatic stress disorder: a MRI investigation.
(It is also somewhat problematic that stress itself did not correlate
with hippocampal volumes since this was one of the potential hypotheses proposed by the authors and thus, appears to undercut the conclusions.)
«This is the first study to look at how physical activity may impact the loss
of hippocampal volume in people at genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease,» says Dr. Kirk Erickson, an associate professor of psychology at the University of Pittsburgh.
Aerobic exercise
increases hippocampal volume in older women with probable mild cognitive impairment: a 6 - month randomised controlled trial
Schizophrenia is characterized by
reduced hippocampal volume, decreased dendritic spine density, altered neuroplasticity signaling pathways, and cognitive deficits associated with impaired hippocampal function.
Lower intakes of nutrient - dense foods and higher intakes of unhealthy foods are each independently associated with smaller
left hippocampal volume.
«That is, patients with smaller
hippocampal volumes at baseline are shown to more likely exhibit increases in volume with ECT and to show concomitant improvements in clinical symptoms.
Hanson et al. (2011) report a significant association between
right hippocampal volumes and paternal, but not maternal, education levels.
Better aerobic fitness however does not appear to
impact hippocampal volume, another area in the brain responsible for memory.
o» (N)» refers to neurodegeneration or neuronal injury and dysfunction, as measured for example
by hippocampal volume, cortical volume / thickness, or CSF total tau (T - tau).
One of the participants of the experimental program was a 66 - year old man whose MRI
showed hippocampal volume at only the 17th percentile for his age.
When they analyzed the MRI data, the researchers found that the physically fit children tended to have
bigger hippocampal volume - about 12 percent bigger relative to total brain size - than their out - of - shape peers.
«If you
remove hippocampal volume from the equation,» Chaddock said, «the relationship between fitness and memory decreases.»
The researchers point out that unlike previous work done in older adults, in this young adult
sample hippocampal volume does not show an association with aerobic fitness.
The neuroscientists will examine the before - and - after images to see whether a small hippocampus really does precede and predict who will get PTSD, or
if hippocampal volume decreases in the later picture.
However, he believes that both Dr. Simmons» findings
concerning hippocampal volume and his study on plasma Aβ concentrations suggest that the AD - suggestive alterations begin perhaps 20 - 30 years before the onset of clinical symptoms, but most probably not earlier.
Moreover, older adults with high aerobic fitness have
higher hippocampal volumes and better spatial memory, providing additional protection from the age - related decline in brain volume.
To our knowledge, this is the first human study to demonstrate associations between diet and
hippocampal volume concordant with data previously observed in animal models.
Magnetic resonance imaging - based measurement
of hippocampal volume in posttraumatic stress disorder related to childhood physical and sexual abuse — a preliminary report.
Reduced hippocampal volume and lower cortisol response to stressors have been demonstrated as features of and risk factors for PTSD, Raper says.
After accounting for baseline cognitive function and experimental group, increased
left hippocampal volume was independently associated with reduced verbal memory and learning performance as indexed by loss after interference (r = 0.42, p = 0.03).
Preliminary findings of Ehling, Nijenhuis and Krikke (2001) are that compared to healthy controls, female patients with DID had approximately 25 %
less hippocampal volume in either hemisphere.
Lindauer RJL, Olff M, van Meijel EPM, Carlier IVE, Gersons BPR, Cortisol, learning, memory, and attention in relation to
smaller hippocampal volume in police officers with posttraumatic stress disorder.
[12] McKinnon, M. C., et al. «A meta - analysis examining clinical predictors of
hippocampal volume in patients with major depressive disorder.»
Only the women in the aerobic group were found to have significant increases in
hippocampal volume, but more studies are needed to determine what effect this has on cognitive performance.
«Higher fit children had higher performance on the relational memory task, higher fit children had larger
hippocampal volumes, and in general, children with larger hippocampal volumes had better relational memory,» Chaddock said.
He is planning to conduct a prescribed exercise intervention in a population of healthy older adults with genetic and other risk factors for Alzheimer's disease and to measure the impact on
hippocampal volume and brain function.
Of all four groups studied, only those at high genetic risk for Alzheimer's who did not exercise experienced a decrease in
hippocampal volume (3 %) over the 18 - month period.
The researchers examined total cerebral volume, frontal lobe volume, temporal lobe volume,
hippocampal volume and white matter hyper - intensity volume in patients without prior stroke or dementia.
Entorhinal and
hippocampal volume was determined using a method known as voxel - based morphometry and then regression analysis to examine whether recognition memory and aerobic fitness predicted brain volumes.
Fifty TU football players, including 25 with a history of concussions, were assessed in real time for differences in
hippocampal volume and cognitive performance.
Moreover, the number of years of playing experience was inversely related to
hippocampal volume and reaction time.
This might also explain the fact that both non-religious as well as some religious individuals have smaller
hippocampal volumes.
Is it possible, for example, that those people with smaller
hippocampal volumes are more likely to have specific religious attributes, drawing the causal arrow in the other direction?