梅斯医学MedSci APP
医路相伴，成就大医
梅斯医学MedSci APP
医路相伴，成就大医
近日，杜克大学等机构的一项联合研究发现，人类眼睛后部的视网膜中的血管宽度或许能暗示大脑的健康程度以及IQ等认知能力。相关研究论文刊登在了近期出版的《心理科学》（Psychological Science）杂志上。
在IQ等智力测试中得分较低的年轻人在健康恶化以及寿命缩短方面的风险较高，社会经济地位以及健康行为等因素并不能解释这一结论。
研究人员想弄清楚，智力是否能够作为暗示大脑健康的标记，是否能反映出为大脑提供氧气和营养的血管系统的健康状态。为了调查清楚智商和大脑健康之间的潜在联系，研究者们借助眼科学相关技术进行研究。
在这项最新研究中，研究人员采用数码视网膜成像技术，以窥探大脑血管的状态。利用这种新技术，他们观察到了位于眼睛后方视网膜中细小血管的情形。结果，研究人员对38岁的实验人群研究发现，拥有较宽的视网膜细小血管与IQ较低现象相关联。甚至在将不同的生活方式以及环境危害的因素考虑进去之后，上述理论仍然成立。
拥有较宽视网膜细小血管的个人表现出了一般认知缺陷的迹象，他们在神经心理学的众多测试中得分较低，这包括言语理解、知觉推理、工作记忆以及执行能力。
Retinal Vessel Caliber and Lifelong Neuropsychological Functioning: Retinal Imaging as an Investigative Tool for Cognitive Epidemiology.
Abstract
Why do more intelligent people live healthier and longer lives? One possibility is that intelligence tests assess health of the brain, but psychological science has lacked technology to evaluate this hypothesis. Digital retinal imaging, a new, noninvasive method to visualize microcirculation in the eye, may reflect vascular conditions in the brain. We studied the association between retinal vessel caliber and neuropsychological functioning in the representative Dunedin birth cohort. Wider venular caliber was associated with poorer neuropsychological functioning at midlife, independently of potentially confounding factors. This association was not limited to any specific test domain and extended to informants' reports of cohort members' cognitive difficulties in everyday life. Moreover, wider venular caliber was associated with lower childhood IQ tested 25 years earlier. The findings indicate that retinal venular caliber may be an indicator of neuropsychological health years before the onset of dementing diseases and suggest that digital retinal imaging may be a useful investigative tool for psychological science.
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