Cognitive Improvement Following Bariatric Surgery is Associated with Enhanced Hippocampal Activation and Reduction in Visceral and Ectopic Fat Deposition.

Background: Evidence has demonstrated that patients with obesity exhibited cognitive impairment and cerebral damage. Bariatric surgery is an effective intervention for obesity and is associated with cognitive improvement. However, the underlying mechanisms by which bariatric surgery improves cognitive function remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate cognitive alterations in patients with obesity before and after bariatric surgery, and to further explore the associations among fat reduction, cognitive alterations, and underlying cerebral changes.

Methods: We conducted an exploratory study on 23 patients with obesity who underwent bariatric surgery. These patients received anthropometric measurements, detailed cognitive assessments, and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans at baseline and 12 months post-surgery to evaluate neuroimaging and cognitive changes.

Results: Compared to baseline, patients with obesity exhibited significant improvements in immediate and delayed memory following bariatric surgery. fMRI scans also revealed increased left hippocampal volume and enhanced right hippocampal activation in patients with obesity postoperatively. Furthermore, these improvements in cognitive function and hippocampal activation were associated with reductions in visceral fat (β = -0.122, 95% bootstrap CI: -0.210, -0.030) and hepatic steatosis (β = -0.147, 95% bootstrap CI: -0.266, -0.053) in the mediation analysis.

Conclusion: This study showed that bariatric surgery significantly reduced fat deposition and improved cognitive function in patients with obesity. Importantly, the improvement in brain functional activation played a key role in alleviating cognitive impairment, underscoring its vital importance in cognitive health.