Joint pain and depression are more than just burdens for seniors—they may collectively harm brain function, particularly memory. A new study, published in the journal Ageing and Mental Health, reveals that older adults experiencing both chronic joint pain and depression are at higher risk of faster cognitive decline over time. The study, conducted by Brazilian researcher Patricia Silva Tofani and her team at the Federal University of Sergipe, tracked 4,718 adults aged 50 and above from the English Longitudinal Study of Aging for 12 years.
Participants were assessed for joint pain (like knee or hip pain), symptoms of depression, and cognitive abilities, including memory, language, executive function, and social cognition. Key Findings Of StudyThe research found that people dealing with both chronic pain and depression have a significantly faster decline in memory and global cognitive performance compared to those experiencing either condition alone. Tofani explained that both pain and depression affect the brain's hippocampus, an area critical for memory and cognitive processing.
“There’s an overlap of information, causing the brain to become ‘congested,’ which forces it to allocate resources to manage pain and depressive symptoms. This, in turn, disrupts memory formation and cognitive performance,” she said. Over the 12 years, the combined effects of pain and depression accelerated cognitive decline, particularly in memory.
However, the study did not find a simila.