Longitudinal relationships among depressive symptoms, cortisol, and brain atrophy in the neocortex and the hippocampus.

OBJECTIVE: Depression is associated with accelerated aging and age-related diseases. However, mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. The aim of this study was to longitudinally assess the link between depressive symptoms, brain atrophy, and cortisol levels. METHOD: Participants from the Betula prospective cohort study (mean age = 59 years, SD = 13.4 years) underwent clinical, neuropsychological and brain 3T MRI assessments at baseline and a 4-year follow-up. Cortisol levels were measured at baseline in four saliva samples. Cortical and hippocampal atrophy rates were estimated and compared between participants with and without depressive symptoms (n = 81) and correlated with cortisol levels (n = 49). RESULTS: Atrophy in the left superior frontal gyrus and right lingual gyrus developed in parallel with depressive symptoms, and in the left temporal pole, superior temporal cortex, and supramarginal cortex after the onset of depressive symptom. Depression-related atrophy was significantly associated with elevated cortisol levels. Elevated cortisol levels were also associated with widespread prefrontal, parietal, lateral, and medial temporal atrophy. CONCLUSION: Depressive symptoms and elevated cortisol levels are associated with atrophy of the prefrontal and limbic areas of the brain.

Low regional cerebral blood flow in burning mouth syndrome patients with depression.

OBJECTIVES: The main aims of this study were to (i) investigate the emotional disorder status of patients with burning mouth syndrome (BMS) and (ii) detect regional cerebral blood flow in BMS patients with the application of combined single-photon emission computed tomography and computed tomography (SPECT/CT). SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The degree of pain was measured using the visual analysis scale, and emotional disorder with the self-rating anxiety scale, self-rating depression scale, and Hamilton depression rating scale in 29 patients with BMS and 10 healthy controls. SPECT/CT was performed in 29 patients with BMS and 10 healthy controls, and statistical parametric mapping method was used for between-group analyses. RESULTS: The incidence rate of depression in patients with BMS was 31.0%. Compared to the control group, patients with BMS displayed significantly different depression and anxiety scales (P < 0.05). Significantly lower regional cerebral blood flow in the left parietal and left temporal lobes was recorded for BMS patients with depression (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with BMS experience more depression and anxious emotion. Moreover, depression in patients with BMS may be associated with lower regional cerebral blood flow in the left temporal and left parietal lobes.

An evaluation of the relationship between maxillary sinus anterior wall depression and maxillary sinus opacity by computed tomography and panoramic radiography.

OBJECTIVE: Maxillary sinus anterior wall depression (AWD) has been associated with patterns such as the presence of panoramic innominate line and silent sinus syndrome. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between AWD of maxillary sinus and both maxillary sinus opacity and the presence of innominate line using computed tomography (CT) and panoramic radiography (PR). MATERIALS AND METHODS: 250 CT and PR images (122 female, 128male) which had been taken for various reasons were randomly selected from the radiology archive of the our department. Innominate line visibility in PR is divided into three as invisible, obscure and clear. On CT images, the distance between guide line and the deepest point of the maxillary sinus anterior wall was calculated as AWD. The presence of maxillary sinus opacity and maxillary sinus AWD were evaluated on CT images. Demographic information such as age, gender and localization of the findings were noted in all measurements. RESULTS: In 143 (57.2%) patients, the innominate line (clear and obscure patterns) was seen on the PR images. AWD was observed in 104 (41.6%) CT images. The presence of maxillary sinus opacity was observed in 117 (46.8%) images. The mean right anterior wall depth was 5.69 and 4.88 in males and females, respectively, while the mean left anterior wall depth was 5.64 and 4.94 in males and females, respectively. Right wall depth was significantly higher in males (p < 0.05).There was no statistically significant difference in left wall depth (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Anterior wall depression was found to be associated with both maxillary sinus opacity and the visibility of the innominate line. Patients with AWD should be considered as susceptible to maxillary sinus diseases.