The Role of Brain Structure & Executive Function on Visuoconstructional Processing in Late Life Depression

Melissa Lamar¹, Emma Rhodes², Olusola Ajilore², Aifeng Zhang², Maria Caserta², Anand Kumar²

Executive functioning appears key to successful visuoconstructional performance in aging but little is known about how it (or age-related alterations in brain structure) contribute to performance in late-life depression. We examined the role of executive functioning in visuoconstructional processing in late life depression and healthy aging taking into account age-related white matter and hippocampal volumes. Comparisons of 57 adults with late-life depression and 87 healthy controls did not reveal brain structure or function (i.e., visuoconstructional) differences; however, regression analyses revealed the importance of executive functioning and white matter volume to visuoconstructional performance in healthy controls but not in late-life depression.