Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41999477›Full record

Trial reportSports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.)2026

Long-Term Effects of a 5-Year Randomized Controlled Exercise Trial on Brain Volumes and Cognitive Function in Older Adults: A 4-Year Post-Intervention Follow-Up Study.

Line Skarsem Reitlo, Jasmine Pani, Dorthe Stensvold, Ulrik Wisløff, Asta Kristine Håberg

Registry-linked trialAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT01666340 (Generation 100), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT01666340 naactive not recruitingnot on this map

Generation 100: How Exercise Affects Mortality and Morbidity in the Elderly: A Randomized Control Study

TypeinterventionalSponsorNorwegian University of Science and TechnologyRan2012 to 2026Enrolled1,567ConditionsAgeingArmsExercise intervention
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

5 authors.

Line Skarsem ReitloDepartment of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway. line.reitlo@ntnu.no.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7153-7700
Jasmine PaniDepartment of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3188-3585
Dorthe StensvoldDepartment of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8942-1316
Ulrik WisløffDepartment of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7211-3587
Asta Kristine HåbergDepartment of Neuromedicine and Movement Science, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9007-1202

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe lasting effects of exercise on brain health in older adults are poorly documented.

objectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the long-term, post-intervention effects 4 years after a 5-year exercise intervention on brain volumes and cognitive abilities in older adults.

methodsA total of 106 older adults (70-77 years at baseline) from the randomized controlled trial (RCT) Generation 100 study randomized into high-intensity interval training (HIIT), moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT), or a control group following national physical activity guidelines for 5 years were included. Post-intervention assessment was performed 9 years after inclusion. Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and exercise characteristics were acquired at baseline and after 1, 3, 5, and 9 years. Cognitive abilities were assessed with verbal list learning, pattern separation, and odor identification tests at baseline and 9 years. Linear mixed models were used to examine the interaction between exercise group and time on brain volumes. The analyses were repeated, including self-reported exercise behaviors (intensity and duration) as covariates. To examine the general effect of exercise intensity independent of group, a separate model was run across all participants with self-reported exercise intensity as independent variable. For cognition, linear regressions examined associations between exercise group and self-reported exercise intensity on cognitive scores at 9 years, and hippocampal volume loss over time on cognitive scores at 9 years. Whether baseline peak oxygen uptake (VO

resultsThe time × group interaction revealed greater hippocampal volume loss in the HIIT compared with the control group 4 years after the intervention ended, similar to what was found during the intervention. We did not find that self-reported exercise behavior was associated with hippocampal volume over time. Across all participants, greater hippocampal volume loss was associated with poorer verbal memory at 9 years. The test scores on verbal memory and pattern separation did, however, not differ between the groups, but the MICT, and trending for the HIIT group, had higher odor identification scores at 9 years. Higher baseline VO

conclusionsThe control group, which followed the national physical activity guidelines, had the lowest hippocampal volume loss over time, even 4 years after the end of a 5-year exercise intervention in fit older adults. Furthermore, higher baseline VO CLINICAL

trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT01666340 (registered 16 August 2012).

Indexed as

BrainCognitionExerciseHigh-Intensity Interval TrainingAgedFemaleFollow-Up StudiesHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleOrgan SizeOxygen Consumption

Identifiers

PMID41999477
PMCPMC13457426

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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.