Distinct Patterns of Cortical Atrophy Predict Cognitive Progression in Age-Related Hearing Loss: A Longitudinal MRI Study
4 affiliations
- 1From the Department of Radiology (L.H., F.C.), Hangzhou TCM Hospital Affiliated with Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
- 2Department of Radiology (Q.Z., X.L., K.L., M.Z.), The 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
- 3Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine (X.L.), Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
- 4Department of Radiology (J.L.), Zhejiang Cancer Hospital, Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China.
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) and dementia are common chronic conditions among the elderly, significantly impacting the quality of life of older adults. Additionally, ARHL is an important and modifiable risk factor for dementia. This study aimed to investigate distinct patterns of cortical atrophy in patients with ARHL and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), comparing those with stable cognition (sMCI) with those who progressed to dementia (pMCI), using longitudinal MRI data. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We included a total of 93 participants from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative: 51 sMCI with normal hearing (sMCI+healthy control, group 1), 20 with sMCI with ARHL (sMCI+ARHL, group 2), and 22 with pMCI and ARHL (pMCI+ARHL, group 3). All subjects underwent 3 longitudinal T1-weighted MRI scans at approximately 1-year intervals. Cortical thickness was measured using FreeSurfer 6.0 in regions including the entorhinal cortex, parahippocampal gyrus, and temporal gyri. Repeated-measures ANOVA was used to compare atrophy rates, and receiver operating characteristic analysis evaluated the predictive value of significant regions. RESULTS: Group 3 showed substantial faster annual atrophy rates in the left entorhinal cortex, left middle temporal gyrus, and bilateral superior temporal gyri compared with group 1. Group 2 also exhibited faster atrophy in temporal regions than group 1. Receiver operating characteristic analysis demonstrated that combined use of these regions improved predictive accuracy for cognitive progression. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with ARHL with progressive cognitive decline exhibit accelerated atrophy in the auditory and early Alzheimer vulnerable regions. Combined cortical thickness measures may serve as a neuroimaging biomarker to predict cognitive progression in populations with ARHL.
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BibTeX
@article{hong2026distinct,
title = {{Distinct Patterns of Cortical Atrophy Predict Cognitive Progression in Age-Related Hearing Loss: A Longitudinal MRI Study}},
author = {Luwei Hong and Qingze Zeng and Xiao Luo and Kaicheng Li and Xiaocao Liu and Jixuan Li and Minming Zhang and Feng Cui and on behalf of Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative},
journal = {AJNR: American Journal of Neuroradiology},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3174/ajnr.a9326},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3174/ajnr.a9326},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Distinct Patterns of Cortical Atrophy Predict Cognitive Progression in Age-Related Hearing Loss: A Longitudinal MRI Study
AU - Luwei Hong
AU - Qingze Zeng
AU - Xiao Luo
AU - Kaicheng Li
AU - Xiaocao Liu
AU - Jixuan Li
AU - Minming Zhang
AU - Feng Cui
AU - on behalf of Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/06
JO - AJNR: American Journal of Neuroradiology
DO - 10.3174/ajnr.a9326
UR - https://doi.org/10.3174/ajnr.a9326
AB - BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) and dementia are common chronic conditions among the elderly, significantly impacting the quality of life of older adults. Additionally, ARHL is an important and modifiable risk factor for dementia. This study aimed to investigate distinct patterns of cortical atrophy in patients with ARHL and mild cognitive impairment (MCI), comparing those with stable cognition (sMCI) with those who progressed to dementia (pMCI), using longitudinal MRI data. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We included a total of 93 participants from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative: 51 sMCI with normal hearing (sMCI+healthy control, group 1), 20 with sMCI with ARHL (sMCI+ARHL, group 2), and 22 with pMCI and ARHL (pMCI+ARHL, group 3). All subjects underwent 3 longitudinal T1-weighted MRI scans at approximately 1-year intervals. Cortical thickness was measured using FreeSurfer 6.0 in regions including the entorhinal cortex, parahippocampal gyrus, and temporal gyri. Repeated-measures ANOVA was used to compare atrophy rates, and receiver operating characteristic analysis evaluated the predictive value of significant regions. RESULTS: Group 3 showed substantial faster annual atrophy rates in the left entorhinal cortex, left middle temporal gyrus, and bilateral superior temporal gyri compared with group 1. Group 2 also exhibited faster atrophy in temporal regions than group 1. Receiver operating characteristic analysis demonstrated that combined use of these regions improved predictive accuracy for cognitive progression. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with ARHL with progressive cognitive decline exhibit accelerated atrophy in the auditory and early Alzheimer vulnerable regions. Combined cortical thickness measures may serve as a neuroimaging biomarker to predict cognitive progression in populations with ARHL.
SN - 0195-6108
SN - 1936-959X
ER -