Researchers discovered that COVID-19 lockdowns accelerated cortical thinning in adolescent brains, with females experiencing more significant and widespread changes than males, indicating a higher developmental impact on female brains.
By Dr. Sushama R. Chaphalkar, PhD.Reviewed by Susha Cheriyedath, M.Sc.Sep 10 2024 Lockdown-related stress led to more severe brain changes in girls, raising concerns about long-term mental health impacts, say scientists.
Background The COVID-19 pandemic led to widespread societal disruptions, including lockdowns and school closures, which negatively impacted adolescent mental health, with females more affected than males. Adolescence is a critical period of emotional, behavioral, and brain development, making it vulnerable to stress.
About the study Normative modeling reveals deviations from expected brain changes due to environmental factors or disorders. It has been widely used to study brain alterations in various conditions, including socioeconomic stress, autism spectrum disorder, depression, and schizophrenia. MRI data were collected from adolescents at two time points and analyzed using Bayesian linear regression to fit models for cortical thickness across 68 brain regions.
Results and discussion As per the study, significant deviations were observed in cortical thickness in the post-pandemic test group, with 30 brain regions showing significant thinning in females, compared to only two regions in males. The regions with notable thinning for females were distributed across all lobes of the brain, while males showed significant thinning only in the occipital lobe.
Overall, the study contributes to our understanding of the interplay between environmental stressors and adolescent brain development, with implications for public health and mental health interventions.
Brain Coronavirus Disease COVID-19 Adolescents Coronavirus Depression Imaging Language Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mental Health Pandemic Stress
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