Traditional Chinese Mind-Body Exercise Baduanjin Modulate Gray Matter and Cognitive Function in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Brain Imaging Study

Abstract

Background: Previous studies found traditional Chinese mind-body exercise Baduanjin could modulate cognition of community older adults. Objective: This study aims to investigate the effect of 6 months of Baduanjin exercise on brain structure and cognitive function in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: The MCI older adults were randomly assigned into either Baduanjin training, brisk walking training or usual physical activity control group. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and Wechsler Memory Scale-Chinese Revised (WMS-CR) were applied to measure gray matter volume (GMV), global cognitive ability and memory at baseline and end of intervention. Results: Compared to usual physical activity, Baduanjin exercise significantly improved MoCA, WMS-CR scores, WMS-MQ, and mental control and comprehension memory subscores of the WMS-CR; significantly increased the GMV in the temporal gyrus, frontal gyrus, parietal gyrus, medial occipital gyrus, cingulate gyrus and angular gyrus after 6 months of intervention. Compared to brisk walking, Baduanjin significantly improved MoCA scores and picture reproduction subscores of memory, and significantly increased the GMV in the right frontal gyrus, precentral gyrus, occipital gyrus. Furthermore, the increased GMV in the right medial temporal gyrus was significantly associated with improvement in the MoCA scores. Conclusion: The present study suggested that regular Baduanjin training could have a positive effect in increasing brain gray matter and improving cognitive function in older adults with MCI.

Associations of Multidomain Interventions With Improvements in Cognition in Mild Cognitive Impairment

“…The publication period ranged from 2011 to 2021, as summarized in Table 1 . 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 Seventeen studies recruited participants from the community 31 , 32 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 40 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 whereas 11 recruited from memory clinics. 33 , 34 , 35 , 38 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 Total sample sizes ranged from 22 to 555, with a mean (SD) age of 71.6 (3.4) years.…”

“…Multidomain interventions included cognitive and physical components 35 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 48 , 52 ; multiple exercise 33 , 40 , 49 , 50 , 55 , 56 or cognitive components 34 ; nutritional supplements 33 , 47 ; mind-body 38 , 46 , 54 ; education 57 , 58 ; cognitive, physical, and social components 31 ; combined cognitive training with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) 51 ; and exercise with music ( Table 1 ). 53 Eighteen studies conducted the intervention components sequentially, 31 , 33 , 34 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 54 , 57 , 58 whereas 10 studies conducted them simultaneously. 32 , 35 , 39 , 45 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 ,…”

“… 53 Eighteen studies conducted the intervention components sequentially, 31 , 33 , 34 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 54 , 57 , 58 whereas 10 studies conducted them simultaneously. 32 , 35 , 39 , 45 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 55 , 56 Interventions were also completed in a group setting in 19 studies 31 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 45 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 58 compared with the remaining 9, which were conducted individually. 32 , 37 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 46 , 51 , 57 Lastly, the active control in 21 studies contained 1 component of the multidomain int...…”

“… 32 , 35 , 39 , 45 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 55 , 56 Interventions were also completed in a group setting in 19 studies 31 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 45 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 58 compared with the remaining 9, which were conducted individually. 32 , 37 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 46 , 51 , 57 Lastly, the active control in 21 studies contained 1 component of the multidomain intervention, 32 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 51 , 53 , 54 , 57 , …”

“…Twenty studies evaluated global cognition, of which 12 reported improvements 34 , 39 , 40 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 49 , 52 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 58 and 7 found no differences in the multidomain intervention compared with the control ( Table 2 ). 31 , 33 , 45 , 46 , 48 , 53 , 57 One study reported increased global cognition scores in the multidomain group, but the changes were smaller than the control.…”