Asthma may put children at risk of memory problems

“Childhood is a period of rapid improvement in memory and, more generally, cognition. In children with asthma, this improvement may be slower.” That’s according to Nicholas Christopher-Hayes, a doctoral student in psychology at the University of California, Davis. To reach this conclusion, he and his team carried out a study, published in the journal JAMA Network Opento examine how asthma impairs toddlers’ memory development.

Development of episodic memory in children with asthma occurs more slowly

As part of the work, the researchers first reviewed data from a cohort on the cognitive development of the children’s brain, called “Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development”, involving 11,800 young people aged 9 to 10 years. Then, only 473 patients suffering from asthma or having no history of this respiratory disease were selected and included in the final analysis, the follow-up of which lasted two years. “Asthma was determined from parent reports.” Volunteers were tested for episodic memory, the memory that makes up the stories of our lives, and executive functions, such as processing speed, inhibition and attention.

Children with earlier onset of asthma, who had the disease for longer, showed slower development of episodic memory. More generally, young people who had been exposed to asthma had lower scores on measures of episodic memory and executive functions. According to the authors, these memory deficits can have long-term consequences. “Asthma could put children on a trajectory that could increase their risk of later developing something more serious like dementia as an adult,” they clarified.

“Understand the factors likely to exacerbate risks or ensure protection”

Although the study did not assess the mechanism responsible for memory difficulties associated with asthma, the team discussed various potential factors, such as prolonged inflammation due to asthma or repeated disruptions in memory. oxygen supply to the brain due to seizures. Research in rodents has also found that common asthma medications have a measurable effect on the hippocampus, a brain structure that plays a fundamental role in episodic memory in rodents and humans. “We need to understand the factors that can exacerbate or protect against risks,” the scientists concluded.