Age-related brain atrophy enhanced by smoking: A quantitative study with computed tomography.

Abstract

We examined the chronic effect of smoking on brain atrophy quantitatively with computed tomography (CT). Study was performed on 159 smokers and 194 non-smokers from 40 to 69 years old with neither neurological nor focal abnormality in brain CT. Brain atrophy index (BAT) which was a quantitative marker of brain atrophy reported previously, was calculated from each pixel of brain CT. There was a significant age dependent increase of BAT in both non-smokers and smokers. Smokers showed a significant increase in BAT (atrophic) compared to non-smokers in three age groups, 50-54, 55-59 (p <0.01, both) and 65-69 (p <0.05).In the male, the mean BAT became high when the smoking index increased (p <0.01).The systolic blood pressure and serum triglycerides of smokers were significantly higher than the non-smokers (p <0.05 and p <0.01). It was suggested that age-related brain atrophy was increased by chronic smoking through advanced atherosclerosis, brain atrophy ; smoking ; computed tmography ; brain aging Aging in the central nervous system constitutes a major public health problem in every part of the world. There is an urgent need to study the risk factors in brain aging for the prevention of mental deterioration (WHO 1981). Many pathological studies have demonstrated that the weight of brain and the number of neurons decrease during normal aging. Brain computed tomography (CT) makes it possible to observe a living human brain non-invasively.Non-specific brain volume reduction observed in normal aged people by CT has been described as brain atrophy (Huckman et al. 1975). Brain atrophy has been affected by various factors, chronic alcoholism (Carlen et al. 1978;Ron et al. 1982), steroids treatments (Benton et al. 1978;Langenstein et al. 1979) and hypertension (Hatazawa et al. 1984). But the effects of chronic smoking are still unclear.

Quantitative Brain MRI in Alcohol Dependence: Preliminary Evidence for Effects of Concurrent Chronic Cigarette Smoking on Regional Brain Volumes

“…Research using computed tomography showed that cigarette smoking was associated with increased brain atrophy with advancing age (Akiyama et al, 1997;Hayee et al, 2003;Kubota et al, 1987), and a recent MRI study found smaller volumes and lower tissue densities in prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortexes and cerebellum of healthy adult smokers (Brody et al, 2004). Prefrontal cortex density in this study was inversely related to pack-year smoking history.…”

Non-treatment-seeking heavy drinkers: Effects of chronic cigarette smoking on brain structure

“…Recent brain neuroimaging studies reported structural abnormalities in non-alcoholic chronic smokers. Specifically, MRI indicated smaller neocortical GM volumes and lower densities in the prefrontal cortex, smaller left anterior cingulate volume, and lower GM densities in the right cerebellum of chronic smokers compared to non-smokers (Brody et al, 2004), and computed tomography showed increased generalized brain atrophy with advancing age in chronic smokers (Akiyama et al, 1997;Hayee et al, 2003;Kubota et al, 1987). Volume reductions in these regions are also commonly reported in alcoholism (see Sullivan, 2000, for review).…”

The Effects of Tobacco Smoke and Nicotine on Cognition and the Brain

“…Early, smaller studies found inconclusive evidence of an association, with one study reporting an association between smoking and higher levels of brain atrophy on CT scan in adults aged 40-69 years (Kubota et al 1987) while another reported no association with silent lacunar infarcts in 270 subjects free of neurological deficits over the age of 40 years (Shintani et al 1998). …”