Smaller hippocampal volume is associated with anxiety symptoms in high-risk Black youth

Abstract

Although there is an established link between smaller hippocampal volume and anxiety, the longitudinal relations between hippocampus structure and anxiety in diverse youth are not well understood. The present longitudinal study investigated hippocampal volumes related to anxiety symptoms in a sample of Black 8–14-year-old youth (N = 64), a population historically underrepresented in neuroimaging research. Smaller hippocampal volumes were associated with greater anxiety symptoms independent of age, sex, intracranial volume and trauma exposure. Exploratory longitudinal analyses showed smaller hippocampal volume as a predictor for anxiety symptoms (n = 37) and not a consequence of anxiety symptoms (n = 32), however results were inconclusive as this finding was no longer significant after correcting for baseline anxiety symptoms. Overall, this data increases our understanding of potential neurobiological mechanisms for anxiety in a high-risk sample of Black youth and suggests future directions into studying trajectories of developmental risk.