Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40722284›Full record

ArticleBrain sciences2025

White Matter Hyperintensities Mediate the Negative Impact of HbA1c Levels on Cognitive Function.

Rudolph Johnstone, Ida Rangus, Natalie Busby, Janina Wilmskoetter, Nicholas Riccardi, Sarah Newman-Norlund, Roger Newman-Norlund, Chris Rorden, Julius Fridriksson, Leonardo Bonilha

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Article in Brain sciences, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Rudolph JohnstoneSchool of Medicine Columbia, University of South Carolina, 6311 Garners Ferry Rd, Columbia, SC 29209, USA.
Ida RangusDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-9189-8941
Natalie BusbyDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7117-7899
Janina WilmskoetterDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, 160 Ashley Avenue, Charleston, SC 29425, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-1083-7301
Nicholas RiccardiDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
Sarah Newman-NorlundDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-9064-1332
Roger Newman-NorlundDepartment of Psychology, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
Chris RordenDepartment of Psychology, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-7554-6142
Julius FridrikssonDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, 915 Greene Street, Columbia, SC 29208, USA.
Leonardo BonilhaSchool of Medicine Columbia, University of South Carolina, 6311 Garners Ferry Rd, Columbia, SC 29209, USA.

Funding

University of South Carolina Excellence Initiative Aging Brain Cohort (ABC) Project
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundType 2 diabetes is linked to impaired cognitive function, but the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. As white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are common in diabetes and associated with vascular brain injury, we investigated whether WMH burden mediates the relationship between hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels and cognition.

methodsWe quantified WMH load using the Fazekas scale and conducted a mediation analysis with HbA1c as the independent variable, Fazekas scale as the mediator, and MoCA scores as the outcome variable.

resultsWMHs partially mediated the relationship between HbA1c levels and MoCA scores (indirect effect = -0.224, 95% CI = -0.619 to -0.050,

conclusionsThis study suggests that WMHs partially mediate the association between chronically elevated blood glucose levels and cognitive impairment in neurologically healthy adults, supporting a potential microvascular mechanism in diabetes-related cognitive impairment.

Indexed as

brain agingcognitive impairmentdementiadiabeteswhite matter hyperintensities

Identifiers

PMID40722284
PMCPMC12293562

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.