Effect of aerobic exercise on hippocampal volume in humans: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Hippocampal volume increase in response to aerobic exercise has been consistently observed in animal models. However, the evidence from human studies is equivocal. We undertook a systematic review to identify all controlled trials examining the effect of aerobic exercise on the hippocampal volumes i...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:NeuroImage (Orlando, Fla.) Vol. 166; pp. 230 - 238
Main Authors: Firth, Joseph, Stubbs, Brendon, Vancampfort, Davy, Schuch, Felipe, Lagopoulos, Jim, Rosenbaum, Simon, Ward, Philip B.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.02.2018
Elsevier Limited
Subjects:
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor
Exercise
Exercise - physiology
Hippocampus
Hippocampus - anatomy & histology
Humans
Meta-analysis
Neurodegeneration
Neurogenesis
Physical activity
Physical fitness
Plasticity
Resistance
Rodents
Systematic review
Resistance
Physical activity
Neurodegeneration
Neurogenesis
Hippocampus
Plasticity
ISSN:1053-8119, 1095-9572, 1095-9572
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Hippocampal volume increase in response to aerobic exercise has been consistently observed in animal models. However, the evidence from human studies is equivocal. We undertook a systematic review to identify all controlled trials examining the effect of aerobic exercise on the hippocampal volumes in humans, and applied meta-analytic techniques to determine if aerobic exercise resulted in volumetric increases. We also sought to establish how volume changes differed in relation to unilateral measures of left/right hippocampal volume, and across the lifespan. A systematic search identified 4398 articles, of which 14 were eligible for inclusion in the primary analysis. A random-effects meta-analysis showed no significant effect of aerobic exercise on total hippocampal volume across the 737 participants. However, aerobic exercise had significant positive effects on left hippocampal volume in comparison to control conditions. Post-hoc analyses indicated effects were driven through exercise preventing the volumetric decreases which occur over time. These results provide meta-analytic evidence for exercise-induced volumetric retention in the left hippocampus. Aerobic exercise interventions may be useful for preventing age-related hippocampal deterioration and maintaining neuronal health.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
content type line 14
ObjectType-Feature-3
ObjectType-Evidence Based Healthcare-1
ObjectType-Article-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
ObjectType-Review-3
content type line 23
ObjectType-Undefined-4
ISSN:1053-8119
1095-9572
1095-9572
DOI:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.11.007