Premium
Mindfulness practice alters brain connectivity in community‐living elders with mild cognitive impairment
Author(s) -
Fam Johnson,
Sun Yu,
Qi Peng,
Lau Regine Cassandra,
Feng Lei,
Kua Ee Heok,
Mahendran Rathi
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
psychiatry and clinical neurosciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1440-1819
pISSN - 1323-1316
DOI - 10.1111/pcn.12972
Subject(s) - mindfulness , neurocognitive , psychology , cognition , mindfulness based stress reduction , insula , functional magnetic resonance imaging , superior temporal gyrus , clinical psychology , neuroscience
Aim There is increasing evidence that mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is associated with widespread brain dysconnectivity. Mindfulness practice, which involves focused attention to experience the present moment in a purposeful way, has been shown to confer positive psychological and functional brain changes in healthy practitioners. It is unclear whether mindfulness practice could improve functional brain connectivity in older adults with cognitive impairment. Methods Forty‐seven participants with MCI were randomized into two groups: a mindfulness practice group and a control group. Functional magnetic resonance imaging of the brain and neurocognitive tests were performed before and after the 3‐month intervention. A temporal efficiency analysis approach was used to examine the spatiotemporal networks of the brain. Results Participants in the mindfulness group had significantly better temporal global efficiency than controls after 3‐months of intervention. Localized changes of temporal nodal properties were present in the right cingulate gyrus, insula, and left superior temporal gyrus. Together, these results suggest greater information transmission efficiency at both the global and local spatiotemporal level. In terms of cognitive function, verbal recognition memory improved in the mindfulness group compared to the controls. Conclusion Elders who practiced mindfulness had better brain network efficiency and neurocognitive function relative to controls in this study, suggesting that mindfulness may be of benefit to aging adults with early cognitive degeneration.