A recent study has found that routine chest CT scans may provide valuable insights into brain health, with lower bone mineral density linked to faster cognitive decline, Qazinform News Agency learnt from WAM.
Researchers from Johns Hopkins University discovered that individuals with lower spinal bone density experienced more rapid deterioration in cognitive function and greater age-related damage to brain white matter.
Using a deep learning algorithm to analyse chest CT images, the team measured bone mineral density in the thoracic vertebrae. Their findings showed that lower bone density was associated with accelerated decline in overall cognition and increased accumulation of white matter hyperintensities in the corpus callosum, a brain region involved in attention, working memory and executive functioning. The researchers suggest that identifying patients with low bone mineral density could help detect those at risk of both skeletal and neurological decline, enabling earlier monitoring and preventive interventions. However, they stressed that the study does not prove osteoporosis causes dementia, but rather points to common underlying factors that may contribute to degeneration in both bone and brain health.
Earlier Qazinform reported, scientists from Texas A&M University have developed a groundbreaking nasal spray that may reverse key aspects of brain aging, offering new hope in the fight against dementia and cognitive decline.