Characteristic changes of prefrontal and motor areas in patients with type 2 diabetes and major depressive disorder during a motor task of tai chi chuan: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study

Abstract

Aim This cross-sectional study aimed to identify the characteristic changes of prefrontal and motor areas during a tai chi chuan task in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and major depressive disorder (MDD) using real-time functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Methods Three parallel groups (T2DM with DD group, T2DM group, and healthy group) were included in the study, who were recruited from December 10, 2022, to May 31, 2023. All the groups conducted a motor task of tai chi chuan designed by Eprime 3.0, and fNIRS was used to monitor brain activation, functional connectivity (FC) and lateralization of prefrontal and motor areas in participants. Results Ninety older adults (aged ≥ 60) participated in this study, including 30 patients with T2DM and MDD, 30 patients with T2DM, and 30 healthy subjects. The T2DM with MDD group showed altered cerebral function compared to T2DM group and healthy groups, including decreased activation, abnormal lateralization index and left-sided lateralization ratio of prefrontal and motor areas, and decreased FC among supplementary motor area, motor area, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Conclusions Patients with T2DM and MDD showed characteristic functional changes in prefrontal and motor areas during a motor task of tai chi chuan which contributed to our understanding of the neuropathology of depression in T2DM patients. This study first confirmed the ability to evaluate real-time brain function of wearable fNIRS which merits further validation in larger sample size.