Overview
- In a peer-reviewed eNeuro paper, scientists introduced the Functional-Structural Ratio, an MRI-derived measure designed to quantify coupled changes in brain function and structure in older adults with hearing loss.
- The study compared 55 people with presbycusis to 55 matched controls aged 50–74, calculating the ratio from low-frequency brain activity (ALFF) and gray-matter volume (GMV).
- Participants with hearing loss showed lower coupling in specific regions, including the putamen and fusiform gyrus involved in sound and speech processing, and the precuneus and medial superior frontal gyrus linked to memory and executive function.
- Lower values of the measure correlated with worse pure-tone and speech-recognition thresholds and with poorer performance on cognitive tests such as MoCA, AVLT, and longer TMT-A times.
- The authors and outside clinicians say the metric could eventually help identify dementia risk or track intervention effects, though the cross-sectional design, modest sample size, and limited demographic data constrain conclusions.