Brain structural changes in COPD patients with cognitive impairment.

ABSTRACT: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is increasingly recognized as a systemic condition associated with an elevated risk of cognitive impairment, particularly in domains of executive function and attention, presenting a pattern distinct from Alzheimer's disease. This review synthesizes evidence from multimodal neuroimaging studies to characterize the cerebral alterations in COPD and frame them within the context of accelerated brain aging. Patients with COPD exhibit widespread structural brain changes, including reduced gray matter volume in cognitively critical regions, such as prefrontal cortex, cingulate gyrus, hippocampus, and basal ganglia. Concurrently, white matter damage is evident as microstructural abnormalities in tracts including the cingulum bundle and corona radiata,

SUBMITTER: Jia-Kai H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12764604 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature