Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is a leading cause of disability and is associated with neurodegenerative changes in brain structure. These changes lead to impairments in cognitive function and are consistent with those seen in aging, suggesting an accelerated aging pattern. In this study we assessed this using machine-learning estimated brain age (BA) as a holistic metric of morphometric changes associated with aging. Structural imaging data from 31 non-depressed CLBP patients and 32 healthy controls from the Pain and Interoception Imaging Network were included. Using our previously developed algorithm, we estimated BA per individual based on grey matter density. We then conducted multivariable linear modeling for effects of group, chronological age, and their interaction on BA. We also performed two voxel-wise analyses comparing grey matter density between CLBP and control individuals and the association between gray matter density and BA. There was an interaction between CLBP and greater chronological age on BA such that the discrepancy in BA between healthy and CLBP individuals was greater for older individuals. In CLBP individuals, BA was not associated with sex, current level of pain, duration of CLBP, or mild to moderate depressive symptoms. CLBP individuals had lower cerebellar grey matter density compared to healthy individuals. Brain age was associated with lower gray matter density in numerous brain regions. CLBP was associated with greater BA, which was more profound in later life. BA as a holistic metric was sensitive to differences in gray matter density in numerous regions which eluded direct comparison between groups.

慢性腰痛 (CLBP) 是导致残疾的主要原因，并且与大脑结构的神经退行性变化有关。这些变化会导致认知功能受损，并且与衰老中所见的变化一致，表明加速衰老模式。在这项研究中，我们使用机器学习估计的大脑年龄 (BA) 作为与衰老相关的形态变化的整体指标来评估这一点。包括来自疼痛和内感受成像网络的 31 名非抑郁 CLBP 患者和 32 名健康对照的结构成像数据。使用我们之前开发的算法，我们根据灰质密度估计每个人的 BA。然后，我们对组、实际年龄及其对 BA 的相互作用的影响进行了多变量线性建模。我们还进行了两项体素分析，比较了 CLBP 和对照个体之间的灰质密度以及灰质密度和 BA 之间的关联。CLBP 与 BA 的更大实足年龄之间存在相互作用，因此对于老年人来说，健康和 CLBP 个体之间的 BA 差异更大。在 CLBP 个体中，BA 与性别、当前疼痛程度、CLBP 持续时间或轻度至中度抑郁症状无关。与健康个体相比，CLBP 个体的小脑灰质密度较低。大脑年龄与许多大脑区域的灰质密度降低有关。CLBP 与更大的 BA 相关，这在以后的生活中更为深刻。