Neighborhood-Level Disadvantage Impacts Multiple Measures of Brain Health: An Imaging Epidemiology Study

The relationship between neighborhood-level socioeconomic disadvantage and brain health is an emerging area of research with critical implications for public health and clinical practice, yet its influence on brain structure remains unclear.

To investigate the epidemiological association between neighborhood-level socioeconomic disadvantage [Area Deprivation Index (ADI)] and morphometric neuroimaging variables in a consecutive, non-disease enriched patient population.

This study, conducted at an academic medical center and associated community partners, used consecutive cross-sectional MRI neuroimaging data from 2,826 inpatient and outpatient individuals without radiological evidence of disease from January 2024 to June 2024. ADI, a geospatially determined index of neighborhood-level disadvantage, was calculated for each individual. Linear regressions tested the relationship between ADI and multiple morphometric variables: brain age gap (BAG; estimated - chronological BA), total brain tissue volume (TBV; total gray + white matter), five subcortical region volumes (hippocampus, thalamus, caudate, putamen, and nucleus accumbens) and four cortical region volumes [anterior cingulate cortex, posterior cingulate cortex, medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), lateral PFC (LPFC)]. Volumetric measures were normalized to intracranial volume. Models controlled for age, sex, and total white matter hyperintensity volume (WMHV).

2,826 individuals (mean age, 52.7 ± 18.8 [standard deviation]; 1732 women) were evaluated. Residence in the 20% most disadvantaged neighborhoods was associated with a higher BAG (βs > 2.12, Ps < .01) and decreased TBV (βs < -5.12, Ps < .05). Additionally, increased WMHV was higher among those in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods (ts < -2.50, Ps < .05) and associated with lower volume in most regions. Interaction models showed increased negative associations between WMHV and volumes of the caudate, nucleus accumbens, and lateral prefrontal cortex among those in the most disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Neighborhood disadvantage is associated with adverse brain morphometry, including higher BAG, lower TBV, and amplified vascular-related regional volume loss.