The Effect Of Baduanjin On Brain Structure Of Mild Cognitive Impairment Patients: A Voxel Based Morphometry Study

Objective:To observe the effect of baduanjin exercise on the cognitive function of the elderly with mild cognitive impairment(MCI),and the relationship between the change of cognitive function and the change of brain structure in patients with mild cognitive impairment was discussed.Methods:Eligible subjects recruited by the research group at the early stage were selected to be included in the study,subjects were divided into baduanjin group,brisk walking group or health education group.the health education group received only simple health education,the baduanjin group and the brisk walking group received the corresponding intervention of baduanjin or brisk walk for 6 months on the basis of health education.The overall cognitive function and memory were measured repeatedly before and after the intervention.Magnetic Resonance Imaging scans were performed before and after the intervention.SPSS21.0software was used for statistical analysis,and one-way ANOVA or non-parametric rank sum test were used to compare the differences between groups.The voxel-based morphometry analysis of structural magnetic resonance imaging data was performed using the VBM8 software package.On this basis,the gray matter volumes in different brain regions were calculated and correlated with the scores of cognitive function and behavioral indicators of the subjects.Results:1.The results showed that there were significant differences in the total scores of MoCA,abstract thinking,WMS,memory quotient,mind(1-100),image reproduction and comprehension memory scores of the three groups after the intervention(P<0.05).The results of multiple comparisons showed that the scores of the above tests were significantly increased in the baduanjin group as compared with the health education group(P<0.05),compared with the brisk walking group the mental(1-100)scores were significantly declined in the health education group,the MoCA total score and abstract thinking scores were significantly increased than in the baduanjin group.2.Compared with the health education control group,VBM analysis found that: in thebaduanjin group,the gray matter density in brain areas such as the left middle temporal gyrus,left superior temporal gyrus,right superior frontal gyrus,right middle frontal gyrus,right middle temporal gyrus,and right inferior parietal lobe increased significantly,while the gray matter density decreased in the right parietal lobe and the postcentral gyrus.The density of gray matter in the left thalamus,right frontal lobe,right insula and left parietal lobe increased in the brisk walking group.Compared with the brisk walking group,gray matter density increased in the right frontal lobe,anterior central gyrus,superior right occipital gyrus and middle right occipital gyrus in the baduanjin group,decreased in the right superior temporal gyrus,right posterior cerebellar lobe and right occipital lobe,.3.Partial correlation analysis of gray matter density values extracted from brain regions with structural changes showed that the right middle temporal gyrus and right occipital lobe were positively correlated with MoCA score(r=0.342,P=0.036),and the right posterior cerebellar lobe was positively correlated with image regeneration score(r=0.362,P=0.026).Conclusion:1.The 6-month baduanjin exercise can effectively improve the overall cognitive function and memory of the elderly with mild cognitive impairment,and its effect is better than that of brisk walking exercise;2.The improvement of cognitive function in MCI patients with baduanjin exercise may be related to the changes in brain structures such as left middle temporal gyrus,left superior temporal gyrus,right superior frontal gyrus,right middle frontal gyrus,right middle temporal gyrus and right subparietal lobule,It was significantly correlated with the changes of gray matter structure in right middle temporal gyrus and right occipital lobe and right posterior cerebellar lobe.