Magnetic resonance abnormalities and cardiovascular disease in older adults. The Cardiovascular Health Study

Depression following small vessel stroke is common and more prevalent in women

OBJECTIVES

We sought to examine the frequency of depression after small vessel-type stroke (SVS) and associated risk factors.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We conducted a retrospective analysis of a prospective cohort of patients enrolled in the American Stroke Association-Bugher SVS Study, which included 200 participants within 2-years of SVS and 79 controls without a history of stroke from 2007 to 2012 at four sites. The primary outcome was PHQ-8, with scores ≥10 consistent with post-stroke depression (PSD). A logistic regression adjusted for age, race, sex, history of diabetes and Short-Form Montreal Cognitive Assessment score (SF-MoCA) was used to compare the risk of having depression after SVS compared to controls. Another logistic regression, adjusted for age, sex, race, level of education, SF-MoCA, white matter disease (WMD) burden, stroke severity (NIHSS), time between stroke and depression screen, history of diabetes, and history of hypertension was used to identify factors independently associated with depression in participants with SVS.

RESULTS

The cohort included 161 participants with SVS (39 excluded due to missing data) and 79 controls. The mean interval between stroke and depression screening was 74 days. Among participants with SVS, 31.7% (n = 51) had PSD compared to 6.3% (n = 5) of controls (RR = 5.44, 95% CI = 2.21-13.38, p = 0.0002). The only two variables independently associated with PSD in participants with SVS were female sex (RR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.09-3.09, p = 0.020) and diabetes (RR 1.69, 95% CI 1.03-2.79).

CONCLUSIONS

After adjusting for several demographic and clinical variables, having a SVS was associated with an approximate 5-fold increased risk of depression and was more frequent in women and in those with diabetes. The extent of WMD was not independently associated with PSD, suggesting that small vessel disease in the setting of an overt SVS may not account for the increased prevalence of depression.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms and white matter hyperintensities in older adults without dementia

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to examine associations between neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) and white matter hyperintensities (WMH) status in older adults without dementia under the hypothesis that WMH increased the odds of having NPS.

DESIGN

Longitudinal analysis of data acquired from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set.

SETTINGS

Data were derived from 46 National Institute on Aging - funded Alzheimer's Disease Research Centers.

PARTICIPANTS

NACC participants aged ≥50 years with available data on WMH severity with a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or who were cognitively unimpaired (CU) were studied. Among 4617 CU participants, 376 had moderate and 54 extensive WMH. Among 3170 participants with MCI, 471 had moderate and 88 had extensive WMH.

MEASUREMENTS

Using Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) scores, WMH were coded as no to mild (CHS score: 0-4), moderate (score: 5-6) or extensive (score: 7-8). NPS were quantified on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire. Binary logistic regression models estimated the odds of reporting each of 12 NPS by WMH status separately for individuals with MCI or who were CU.

RESULTS

Compared to CU individuals with no to mild WMH, the odds of having elation [9.87, (2.63-37.10)], disinhibition [4.42, (1.28-15.32)], agitation [3.51, (1.29-9.54)] or anxiety [2.74, (1.28-5.88)] were higher for the extensive WMH group, whereas the odds of having disinhibition were higher for the moderate WMH group [1.94, (1.05-3.61)]. In the MCI group, he odds of NPS did not vary by WMH status.

CONCLUSIONS

Extensive WMH were associated with higher odds of NPS in CU older adults but not in those with MCI.

Impact of the Ventricle Size on Alzheimer's Disease Progression: A Retrospective Longitudinal Study

Background and Purpose

Ventricle enlargement has been implicated in the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We studied the relationship between ventricular size and cognitive function in patients with AD. We focused on the effect of the initial ventricle size on the rate of cognitive decline in patients with AD.

Methods

A retrospective analysis of probable clinical AD participants with more than 2 magnetic resonance imaging images was performed. To measure ventricle size, we used visual rating scales of (1) Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS) score and (2) conventional linear measurement method.

Results

Increased clinical dementia rating (CDR) was correlated with a decreased Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE) score, and increased medial temporal lobe atrophy (MTLA) and global ventricle size (p<0.001, p<0.001, p=0.021, respectively). There was a significant correlation between the change in cognitive function in the group (70%-100%ile) with a large initial ventricle size (p=0.021 for ΔCDR, p=0.01 for ΔMMSE), while the median ventricle size (30%-70%ile) showed correlation with other brain structural changes (MTLA, frontal atrophy [FA], and white matter) (p=0.036 for initial MTLA, p=0.034 for FA).

Conclusions

In this study, the initial ventricle size may be a potential new imaging biomarker for initial cognitive function and clinical progression in AD. We found a relationship between the initial ventricle size and initial AD-related brain structural biomarkers.

The volume and the distribution of premorbid white matter hyperintensities: Impact on post-stroke aphasia

White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are a radiological manifestation of progressive white matter integrity loss. The total volume and distribution of WMH within the corpus callosum have been associated with pathological cognitive ageing processes but have not been considered in relation to post-stroke aphasia outcomes. We investigated the contribution of both the total volume of WMH, and the extent of WMH lesion load in the corpus callosum to the recovery of language after first-ever stroke. Behavioural and neuroimaging data from individuals (N = 37) with a left-hemisphere stroke were included at the early subacute stage of recovery. Spoken language comprehension and production abilities were assessed using word and sentence-level tasks. Neuroimaging data was used to derive stroke lesion variables (volume and lesion load to language critical regions) and WMH variables (WMH volume and lesion load to three callosal segments). WMH volume did not predict variance in language measures, when considered together with stroke lesion and demographic variables. However, WMH lesion load in the forceps minor segment of the corpus callosum explained variance in early subacute comprehension abilities (t = -2.59, p = .01) together with corrected stroke lesion volume and socio-demographic variables. Premorbid WMH lesions in the forceps minor were negatively associated with early subacute language comprehension after aphasic stroke. This negative impact of callosal WMH on language is consistent with converging evidence from pathological ageing suggesting that callosal WMH disrupt the neural networks supporting a range of cognitive functions.

The correlation between medial pattern of intracranial arterial calcification and white matter hyperintensities

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Despite reported correlations between intracranial arterial calcification (IAC) and white matter hyperintensities (WMH), little is known about the relationship between IAC pattern and WMH. By differentiating intimal and medial IAC, we aimed to investigate the relationship between IAC pattern and WMH.

METHODS

Consecutive acute stroke patients were included. IAC pattern was categorized as intimal or medial on plain brain CT. The number of cerebral arteries involved by IAC for each patient was recorded. IAC severity was defined as focal or diffuse. On brain MRI, the burden of WMH was visually graded and classified as absent mild, moderate and severe. Multiple logistic regression was performed to examine the relationship between IAC and WMH.

RESULTS

Among 265 patients, intimal IAC was detected in 54.7% patients and medial IAC in 48.5% patients. Diffuse IAC was present in 27.9% patients, all of which were medial. WMH was found in 75.5% patients, including 39.6% patients with mild WMH, 26.0% with moderate WMH, and 9.8% with severe WMH. The severity of medial IAC was correlated with WMH occurrence (p < 0.001). Chi-square linear trend suggested the number of arteries involved by medial IAC (p < 0.001) and the severity of medial IAC (p < 0.001) were correlated with WMH burden. Multiple ordinal logistic regression demonstrated a positive correlation of WMH burden with the number of arteries involved by medial IAC (p < 0.001) and the severity of medial IAC (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Medial IAC was correlated with WMH. The dose-effect relationship between medial IAC and WMH suggests underlying shared mechanisms of intracranial large artery disease and small vessel disease.

Arteriolosclerosis CSVD: a common cause of dementia and stroke and its association with cognitive function and total MRI burden

Objective

Arteriolosclerosis cerebral small vessel disease (CSVD) is a common type of CSVD. This study aimed to explore the factors associated with cognitive function and total MRI burden related to the disease.

Methods

The demographic characteristics, clinical manifestations, cognitive function score, Barthel Index (BI), blood test index, and follow-up results of arteriolosclerosis CSVD patients treated for the first time in our hospital from January 2014 to August 2022 were collected. White matter hyperintensity (WMH) Fazekas score, total MRI burden, and cerebral atrophy grade were evaluated according to brain MRI findings. Factors associated with CSVD cognitive function were analyzed by binary logistic regression. The correlative factors related to the total MRI burden of CSVD were analyzed by ordered multiple logistic regression.

Results

A total of 146 patients were included in this study, of which 132 cases (90.4%) had hypertension. There were 108 patients (74.0%) with cognitive dysfunction, 97 patients (66.4%) with balance and gait disorders, and 83 patients (56.8%) with moderate-to-severe dependence in daily life (BI ≤ 60 points). Of 146 patients, 79 (54.1%) completed clinical and imaging follow-ups for a median of 3 years. The number of patients with cognitive impairment and BI ≤ 60 points after follow-up significantly increased compared with the first admission (P < 0.001). There were also significant differences in total MRI burden (P = 0.001), WMH Fazekas score, and cerebral atrophy grade (P < 0.001). Mean age (P = 0.012), median deep WMH Fazekas score (P = 0.028), and median deep (P < 0.001) and superficial (P =0.002) cerebral atrophy grade of patients with cognitive impairment at first admission were all higher than those with non-cognitive impairment. Multivariate analysis showed that deep cerebral atrophy was independently and significantly associated with cognitive impairment of CSVD (P = 0.024), and hypertension was significantly and independently associated with total MRI burden (P = 0.001).

Conclusion

The disease course of arteriolosclerosis CSVD may be related to cognitive function and total MRI burden. Deep cerebral atrophy was an independent risk factor for cognitive dysfunction in arteriolosclerosis CSVD, and hypertension was an independent risk factor for total MRI burden.

Age-Related Factors Associated With The Risk of Hip Fracture

OBJECTIVE

Advancing age is a powerful risk factor for hip fractures. The biological mechanisms through which aging impacts the risk of hip fractures have not been well studied.

METHODS

Biological factors associated with "advancing age" that help to explain how aging is associated with the risk of hip fractures are reviewed. The findings are based on analyses of the Cardiovascular Health Study, an ongoing observational study of adults aged ≥65 years with 25 years of follow-up.

RESULTS

The following 5 age-related factors were found to be significantly associated with the risk of hip fractures: (1) microvascular disease of the kidneys (albuminuria and/or elevated urine-albumin-to-creatinine ratio) and brain (abnormal white matter disease on brain magnetic resonance imaging); (2) increased serum levels of carboxymethyl-lysine, an advanced glycation end product that reflects glycation and oxidative stress; (3) reduced parasympathetic tone, as derived from 24-hour Holter monitoring; (4) carotid artery atherosclerosis in the absence of clinical cardiovascular disease; and (5) increased transfatty acid levels in the blood. Each of these factors was associated with a 10% to 25% increased risk of fractures. These associations were independent of traditional risk factors for hip fractures.

CONCLUSION

Several factors associated with older age help to explain how "aging" may be associated with the risk of hip fractures. These same factors may also explain the high risk of mortality following hip fractures.

Spatial patterns of white matter hyperintensities: a systematic review

Background

White matter hyperintensities are an important marker of cerebral small vessel disease. This disease burden is commonly described as hyperintense areas in the cerebral white matter, as seen on T2-weighted fluid attenuated inversion recovery magnetic resonance imaging data. Studies have demonstrated associations with various cognitive impairments, neurological diseases, and neuropathologies, as well as clinical and risk factors, such as age, sex, and hypertension. Due to their heterogeneous appearance in location and size, studies have started to investigate spatial distributions and patterns, beyond summarizing this cerebrovascular disease burden in a single metric-its volume. Here, we review the evidence of association of white matter hyperintensity spatial patterns with its risk factors and clinical diagnoses.

Design/methods

We performed a systematic review in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) Statement. We used the standards for reporting vascular changes on neuroimaging criteria to construct a search string for literature search on PubMed. Studies written in English from the earliest records available until January 31st, 2023, were eligible for inclusion if they reported on spatial patterns of white matter hyperintensities of presumed vascular origin.

Results

A total of 380 studies were identified by the initial literature search, of which 41 studies satisfied the inclusion criteria. These studies included cohorts based on mild cognitive impairment (15/41), Alzheimer's disease (14/41), Dementia (5/41), Parkinson's disease (3/41), and subjective cognitive decline (2/41). Additionally, 6 of 41 studies investigated cognitively normal, older cohorts, two of which were population-based, or other clinical findings such as acute ischemic stroke or reduced cardiac output. Cohorts ranged from 32 to 882 patients/participants [median cohort size 191.5 and 51.6% female (range: 17.9-81.3%)]. The studies included in this review have identified spatial heterogeneity of WMHs with various impairments, diseases, and pathologies as well as with sex and (cerebro)vascular risk factors.

Conclusion

The results show that studying white matter hyperintensities on a more granular level might give a deeper understanding of the underlying neuropathology and their effects. This motivates further studies examining the spatial patterns of white matter hyperintensities.

Early Subacute White Matter Hyperintensities and Recovery of Language After Stroke

BACKGROUND

White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are considered to contribute to diminished brain reserve, negatively impacting on stroke recovery. While WMH identified in the chronic phase after stroke have been associated with post-stroke aphasia, the contribution of premorbid WMH to the early recovery of language across production and comprehension has not been investigated.

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationship between premorbid WMH severity and longitudinal comprehension and production outcomes in aphasia, after controlling for stroke lesion variables.

METHODS

Longitudinal behavioral data from individuals with a left-hemisphere stroke were included at the early subacute (n = 37) and chronic (n = 28) stage. Spoken language comprehension and production abilities were assessed at both timepoints using word and sentence-level tasks. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed at the early subacute stage to derive stroke lesion variables (volume and proportion damage to critical regions) and WMH severity rating.

RESULTS

The presence of severe WMH explained an additional 18% and 25% variance in early subacute (t = -3.00, p = .004) and chronic (t = -3.60, P = .001) language comprehension abilities respectively, after controlling for stroke lesion variables. WMH did not predict additional variance of language production scores.

CONCLUSIONS

Subacute clinical MRI can be used to improve prognoses of recovery of aphasia after stroke. We demonstrate that severe early subacute WMH add to the prediction of impaired longitudinal language recovery in comprehension, but not production. This emphasizes the need to consider different domains of language when investigating novel neurobiological predictors of aphasia recovery.

Examining the Validity and Utility of Montreal Cognitive Assessment Domain Scores for Early Neurocognitive Disorders

OBJECTIVES

Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) total scores have been widely used to identify individuals with neurocognitive disorders (NCDs), but the utility of its domain-specific scores have yet to be thoroughly interrogated. This study aimed to validate MoCA's 6 domain-specific scores (ie, Memory, Language, Attention, Executive, Visuospatial, and Orientation) with conventional neuropsychological tests and explore whether MoCA domain scores could discriminate between different etiologies in early NCDs.

DESIGN

Baseline data of a cohort study.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

Study included 14,571 participants recruited from Alzheimer's Disease Centers across United States, aged ≥50 years, with global Clinical Dementia Rating of ≤1, and mean age of 71.8 ± 8.9 years.

METHODS

Participants completed MoCA, conventional neuropsychological tests, and underwent standardized assessments to diagnose various etiologies of NCDs. Partial correlation coefficient was used to examine construct validity between Z scores of neuropsychological tests and MoCA domain scores, whereas multinomial logistic regression examined utility of domain scores to differentiate between etiologies of early NCDs.

RESULTS

MoCA domain scores correlated stronger with equivalent constructs (r = 0.15-0.43, P < .001), and showed divergence from dissimilar constructs on neuropsychological tests. Participants with Alzheimer's disease were associated with greater impairment in Memory, Attention, Visuospatial, and Orientation domains (RRR = 1.13-1.55, P < .001). Participants with Lewy body disease were impaired in Attention and Visuospatial domains (RRR = 1.21-1.47, P < .001); participants with frontotemporal lobar degeneration were impaired in Language, Executive, and Orientation domains (RRR = 1.25-1.75, P < .01); and participants with Vascular disease were impaired in Attention domain (RRR = 1.14, P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

MoCA domain scores approximate well-established neuropsychological tests and can be valuable in discriminating different etiologies of early NCDs. Although MoCA domain scores may not fully substitute neuropsychological tests, especially in the context of diagnostic uncertainties, they can complement MoCA total scores as part of systematic evaluation of early NCDs and conserve the use of neuropsychological tests to patients who are more likely to require further assessments.

Exercise as therapy for neurodevelopmental and cognitive dysfunction in people with a Fontan circulation: A narrative review

People with a Fontan circulation are at risk of neurodevelopmental delay and disability, and cognitive dysfunction, that has significant implications for academic and occupational attainment, psychosocial functioning, and overall quality of life. Interventions for improving these outcomes are lacking. This review article discusses current intervention practices and explores the evidence supporting exercise as a potential intervention for improving cognitive functioning in people living with a Fontan circulation. Proposed pathophysiological mechanisms underpinning these associations are discussed in the context of Fontan physiology and avenues for future research are recommended.

Association of covert brain infarcts and white matter hyperintensities with risk of hip fracture in older adults: the Cardiovascular Health Study

Covert brain infarcts and white matter hyperintensities (WMHs), incidental markers of brain microvascular disease commonly seen on brain MRIs in older adults, have been associated with falls and lower bone mineral density. We found covert infarcts and WMHs may also be associated with an increased risk of future hip fracture.

INTRODUCTION

To determine whether covert infarcts and white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are associated with increased risk of incident hip fracture.

METHODS

A prospective cohort of 3373 community-dwelling adults aged ≥ 65 years enrolled in the Cardiovascular Health Study with a brain MRI (1992-1993) was analyzed. Covert infarcts were categorized by number of infarcts and largest infarct size. WMH burden was assessed by radiologists and graded qualitatively from 0 (no WMHs) to 9 (extensive).

RESULTS

Participants had 465 incident hip fractures during a mean follow-up of 12.8 years. The demographic-adjusted hazard of incident hip fracture was 32% higher among participants with ≥ 1 covert infarct compared to those without infarcts (hazard ratio (HR) 1.32; 95% CI, 1.08-1.62). The hazard of incident hip fracture was similar after further adjustment for medications and medical history (HR = 1.34; 95% CI, 1.08-1.65), but attenuated following additional adjustment for functional status, frailty, and falls (HR = 1.25; 95% CI, 0.99-1.57). Fully adjusted hazard of incident hip fracture per increase in infarct number was 1.10 (95% CI, 0.98-1.23); risk in individuals whose largest infarct was ≥ 20 mm versus 3 to < 20 mm was similar. Compared with WMH grades 0-1, the demographic-adjusted hazard of hip fracture was 1.34 (95% CI, 1.09-1.66) and 1.83 (95% CI, 1.37-2.46), respectively, for WMH grades 2-3 and 4-9. The hazard was similar following adjustment for medications and medical history (grades 2-3: HR = 1.32; 95% CI, 1.05-1.64; grades 4-9: HR = 1.69; 95% CI, 1.23-2.30), but attenuated following additional adjustment for functional status, frailty, and falls (grades 2-3: HR = 1.24; 95% CI, 0.98-1.56; grades 4-9: HR = 1.34; 95% CI, 0.95-1.90).

CONCLUSION

Older, community-dwelling adults with covert infarcts or WMHs may be at increased risk of hip fracture.

Educational and Clinical Associations With Longitudinal Cognitive Function and Brain Imaging in American Indians: The Strong Heart Study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Little is known about incidence of vascular and Alzheimer dementias in American Indians.

METHODS

We conducted a large, heterogeneous, population-based, longitudinal cohort study of brain aging in community-dwelling American Indians aged 64-95 years from 11 tribes across 3 states, with neurologic examinations, 1.5T MRI, and extensive cognitive testing. Visit 1 in 2010-2013 (n = 817) and visit 2 in 2017-2019 (n = 403) included all willing, surviving participants. Standardized cognitive tests at both visits included Modified Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE), Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale digit symbol coding (WAIS), Controlled Oral Word Association (COWA), and California Verbal Learning Test short form (CVLT). Test materials added at follow-up included Wide Range Achievement (reading) Test (WRAT) and National Alzheimer Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set cognitive battery (v3 form C2), including Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). MRI neuroradiologists coded infarcts, hemorrhages, white matter hyperintensities, sulcal atrophy, and ventricle enlargement.

RESULTS

The mean time between examinations was 6.7 years (SD 1.1, range 3.8-9.1 years). Years of formal education had modest correlation with WRAT reading score (r = 0.45). Prevalence and incidence (respectively) of infarcts were 32% and 12.8/1,000 person-years (PYs) hemorrhages 6% and 4.4/1000 PY worsening sulci 74% and 19.0/1000 PY worsening ventricle 79% and 30.1/1000 PY worsening leukoaraiosis 44% and 26.1/1000 PY. Linear losses per year in cognitive scores were 0.6% MMSE, 1.2% WAIS, 0.6% COWA, and 2.2% CVLT. The mean MoCA scores were 18.9 (SD 4.3).

DISCUSSION

These are the first data on longitudinal cognitive and imaging changes in American Indians and first reports of Alzheimer disease-related features. The mean scores in MoCA were similar or lower than standard cutoffs used to diagnose dementia in other racial/ethnic groups, suggesting that standardized cognitive tests may not perform well in this population. Test validation, adaptation, and score adjustment are warranted. Years of education were a poor proxy for premorbid function, suggesting novel methods for cognitive score contextualization is also needed in this population. Evaluation of selective survival suggests attrition from death, and frailty should be accounted for in causal analyses. Overall, these data represent a unique opportunity to examine neurology topics of critical importance to an understudied population.

Right hemispheric white matter hyperintensities improve the prediction of spatial neglect severity in acute stroke

White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are frequently observed in brain scans of elderly people. They are associated with an increased risk of stroke, cognitive decline, and dementia. However, it is unknown yet if measures of WMH provide information that improve the understanding of poststroke outcome compared to only state-of-the-art stereotaxic structural lesion data. We implemented high-dimensional machine learning models, based on support vector regression, to predict the severity of spatial neglect in 103 acute right hemispheric stroke patients. We found that (1) the additional information of right hemispheric or bilateral voxel-based topographic WMH extent indeed yielded a significant improvement in predicting acute neglect severity (compared to the voxel-based stroke lesion map alone). (2) Periventricular WMH appeared more relevant for prediction than deep subcortical WMH. (3) Among different measures of WMH, voxel-based maps as measures of topographic extent allowed more accurate predictions compared to the use of traditional ordinally assessed visual rating scales (Fazekas-scale, Cardiovascular Health Study-scale). In summary, topographic WMH appear to be a valuable clinical imaging biomarker for predicting the severity of cognitive deficits and bears great potential for rehabilitation guidance of acute stroke patients.

Aphasia severity is modulated by race and lesion size in chronic survivors: A retrospective study

INTRODUCTION

In stroke survivors with aphasia (SWA), differences in behavioral language performance have been observed between Black and White Americans. These racial differences in aphasia outcomes may reflect biological stroke severity, disparities in access to care, potential assessment bias, or interactions between these factors and race. Understanding the origin of disparities in aphasia outcomes is critical to any efforts to promote health equity among SWA. In this study, we explore aphasia outcomes by examining the relationship between race, socioeconomic status, and neurological factors in SWA.

METHOD

Eighty-five chronic left-hemisphere SWA (31 Black, 54 White) participated in the study. The primary aphasia outcome measure was the Western Aphasia Battery-Revised (WAB-R). Lesion size was measured based on manual lesion segmentations. FLAIR and T2 images were scored for severity of white matter disease. Independent sample t-tests were used to determine differences by race in education, age, income, aphasia severity, white matter disease, and lesion size. A linear regression model was used to explore factors that predicted aphasia severity on the WAB-R.

RESULT

Level of education and estimated income differed by race in our sample. For predictors of aphasia severity, the regression model revealed a significant effect of lesion size on WAB Aphasia Quotient and an interaction of race x lesion size, such that Black and White participants with small lesions had similar WAB scores, but in individuals with larger lesions, Black participants had lower WAB scores than White participants.

CONCLUSION

We suggest two explanations for the difference between Black and White SWA in the relationship between lesion size and aphasia severity. First, the impact of disparities in access to rehabilitation after stroke may be more evident when a stroke is larger and causes significant aphasia. Additionally, an assessment bias in aphasia outcome measures may be more evident with increasing severity of aphasia. Future studies should further discern the drivers of observed disparities in aphasia outcomes in order to identify opportunities to improve equity in aphasia care.

The contribution of white matter pathology, hypoperfusion, lesion load, and stroke recurrence to language deficits following acute subcortical left hemisphere stroke

Aphasia, the loss of language ability following damage to the brain, is among the most disabling and common consequences of stroke. Subcortical stroke, occurring in the basal ganglia, thalamus, and/or deep white matter can result in aphasia, often characterized by word fluency, motor speech output, or sentence generation impairments. The link between greater lesion volume and acute aphasia is well documented, but the independent contributions of lesion location, cortical hypoperfusion, prior stroke, and white matter degeneration (leukoaraiosis) remain unclear, particularly in subcortical aphasia. Thus, we aimed to disentangle the contributions of each factor on language impairments in left hemisphere acute subcortical stroke survivors. Eighty patients with acute ischemic left hemisphere subcortical stroke (less than 10 days post-onset) participated. We manually traced acute lesions on diffusion-weighted scans and prior lesions on T2-weighted scans. Leukoaraiosis was rated on T2-weighted scans using the Fazekas et al. (1987) scale. Fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) scans were evaluated for hyperintense vessels in each vascular territory, providing an indirect measure of hypoperfusion in lieu of perfusion-weighted imaging. We found that language performance was negatively correlated with acute/total lesion volumes and greater damage to substructures of the deep white matter and basal ganglia. We conducted a LASSO regression that included all variables for which we found significant univariate relationships to language performance, plus nuisance regressors. Only total lesion volume was a significant predictor of global language impairment severity. Further examination of three participants with severe language impairments suggests that their deficits result from impairment in domain-general, rather than linguistic, processes. Given the variability in language deficits and imaging markers associated with such deficits, it seems likely that subcortical aphasia is a heterogeneous clinical syndrome with distinct causes across individuals.

Diabetes and associated cognitive disorders: Role of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary Adrenal axis

Both diabetes types, types 1 and 2, are associated with cognitive impairments. Each period of life is concerned, and this is an increasing public health problem. Animal models have been developed to investigate the biological actors involved in such impairments. Many levels of the brain function (structure, volume, neurogenesis, neurotransmission, behavior) are involved. In this review, we detailed the part potentially played by the Hypothalamic-Pituitary Adrenal axis in these dysfunctions. Notably, regulating glucocorticoid levels, their receptors and their bioavailability appear to be relevant for future research studies, and treatment development.

When less is more: Non-contrast head CT alone to work-up hypertensive intracerebral hemorrhage

Hypertension is a common cause of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). The work up typically involves neuroimaging of the brain and blood vessels to determine etiology. However, extensive testing may be unnecessary for presumed hypertensive hemorrhages, and instead prolong hospital stay and increase costs. This study evaluates the predictive utility of hemorrhage location on the non-contrast head CT in determining hypertensive ICH. Patients presenting with non-traumatic ICH between March 2014 and June 2019 were prospectively enrolled. Hemorrhage etiology was determined based on previously defined criteria. Chi square and Student's t tests were used to determine the association between patient demographics, ICH severity, neuroimaging characteristics, and medical variables, with hypertensive etiology. Multivariable regression models and an ROC analysis determined utility of CT to accurately diagnose hypertensive ICH. Data on 380 patients with ICH were collected; 42% were determined to be hypertensive. Along with deep location on CT, black race, history of hypertension, renal disease, left ventricular hypertrophy, and higher admission blood pressure were significantly associated with hypertensive etiology, while atrial fibrillation and anticoagulation were associated with non-hypertensive etiologies. Deep location alone resulted in an area under the curve of 0.726. When history of hypertension was added, this improved to 0.771. Additional variables did not further improve the model's predictability. Hypertensive ICH is associated with several predictive factors. Using deep location and history of hypertension alone correctly identifies the majority of hypertensive ICH without additional work-up. This model may result in more efficient diagnostic testing without sacrificing patient care.

Association of Vascular Properties With the Brain White Matter Hyperintensity in Middle-Aged Population

Background The periventricular white matter is more sensitive to the systemic hemodynamic alterations than the deep white matter because of differences in its vascular structure and systemic circulation relationship. We hypothesize that periventricular white matter hyperintensity (PVWMH) volume shows greater association than deep white matter hyperintensity (DWMH) volume with vascular properties (VPs) reflecting arterial stiffness and cardiovascular remodeling, indicators of the systemic circulation. Methods and Results A total of 426 participants (age, 59.0±6.1 years; 57.5% women; and 39.7% Black race) in the Genetic Study of Atherosclerosis Risk who were aged ≥50 years and had brain magnetic resonance imaging were studied. VPs included pulse pressure, hypertensive response to exercise, diastolic brachial artery diameter, diastolic common carotid artery diameter, common carotid artery distensibility coefficient, and left ventricular function. The relative associations of VPs with PVWMH and DWMH as multiple measures within the same individual were determined using multilevel linear models. We also determined if age modified the differences in VPs associations with PVWMH and DWMH. Our findings indicated that, within the same subject, PVWMH volume had greater association than DWMH volume with pulse pressure (P=0.002), hypertensive response to exercise (P=0.04), diastolic brachial artery diameter (P=0.012), and diastolic common carotid artery diameter (P=0.04), independent of age and cardiovascular risk factors. The differences of PVWMH versus DWMH associations with VPs did not differ at any age threshold. Conclusions We show, for the first time, that PVWMH has greater association than DWMH, independent of age, with vascular measurements of arterial stiffness and cardiovascular remodeling suggesting that changes in the systemic circulation affect the PVWMH and DWMH differently.

Multidomain cognitive dysfunction after minor stroke suggests generalized disruption of cognitive networks

OBJECTIVE

Although small strokes typically result in "good" functional outcomes, significant cognitive impairment can occur. This longitudinal study examined a cohort of patients with minor stroke to determine the pattern of deficits, evolution over time, and factors associated with outcome.

METHODS

Patients admitted to the hospital with their first clinical minor stroke (NIH Stroke Scale [NIHSS] ≤ 10, absence of severe hemiparesis, aphasia, or neglect) were assessed at 1 month post-infarct, and a subset were followed over time (with 6- and 12-month evaluations). Composite scores at each time point were generated for global cognition, verbal memory, spatial memory, motor speed, processing speed, and executive function. Paired t-tests evaluated change in scores over time. Regression models identified factors associated with initial performance and better recovery.

RESULTS

Eighty patients were enrolled, evaluated at 1 month, and prospectively followed. The average age of the participants was 62.3 years, and mean education was 13.5 years. The average stroke volume was 6.6 cc; mean NIHSS score was 2.8. At 1 month, cognitive scores were below the normative range and > 1 standard deviation below the patient's peak ("recovery") score for every cognitive domain, strongly suggesting that they were well below patients' prestroke baselines. Forty-eight patients followed up at 6 months, and 39 at 12 months. Nearly all (98%) patients significantly improved in global cognition (averaged across domains) between 1 and 6 months. Between 6 and 12 months, recovery was variable. Higher education, occupational class, and Caucasian race were associated with higher recovery scores for most domains.

CONCLUSIONS

Cognitive impairment across multiple domains is common following minor stroke regardless of infarct location, suggesting a global process such as network dysfunction that improves over 6 months. Degree of recovery can be predicted using baseline factors.

Associations of cognitive performance with cardiovascular magnetic resonance phenotypes in the UK Biobank

AIMS

Existing evidence suggests links between brain and cardiovascular health. We investigated associations between cognitive performance and cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) phenotypes in the UK Biobank, considering a range of potential confounders.

METHODS AND RESULTS

We studied 29 763 participants with CMR and cognitive testing, specifically, fluid intelligence (FI, 13 verbal-numeric reasoning questions), and reaction time (RT, a timed pairs matching exercise); both were considered continuous variables for modelling. We included the following CMR metrics: left and right ventricular (LV and RV) volumes in end-diastole and end-systole, LV/RV ejection fractions, LV/RV stroke volumes, LV mass, and aortic distensibility. Multivariable linear regression models were used to estimate the association of each CMR measure with FI and RT, adjusting for age, sex, smoking, education, deprivation, diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, prior myocardial infarction, alcohol intake, and exercise level. We report standardized beta-coefficients, 95% confidence intervals, and P-values adjusted for multiple testing. In this predominantly healthy cohort (average age 63.0 ± 7.5 years), better cognitive performance (higher FI, lower RT) was associated with larger LV/RV volumes, higher LV/RV stroke volumes, greater LV mass, and greater aortic distensibility in fully adjusted models. There was some evidence of non-linearity in the relationship between FI and LV end-systolic volume, with reversal of the direction of association at very high volumes. Associations were consistent for men and women and in different ages.

CONCLUSION

Better cognitive performance is associated with CMR measures likely representing a healthier cardiovascular phenotype. These relationships remained significant after adjustment for a range of cardiometabolic, lifestyle, and demographic factors, suggesting possible involvement of alternative disease mechanisms.

Cerebrovascular stiffness and flow dynamics in the presence of amyloid and tau biomarkers

INTRODUCTION

This work investigated the relationship between cerebrovascular disease (CVD) markers and Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers of amyloid beta deposition, and neurofibrillary tau tangles in subjects spanning the AD clinical spectrum.

METHODS

A total of 136 subjects participated in this study. Four groups were established based on AD biomarker positivity from positron emission tomography (amyloid [A] and tau [T]) and clinical diagnosis (cognitively normal [CN] and impaired [IM]). CVD markers were derived from structural and quantitative magnetic resonance imaging data.

RESULTS

Transcapillary pulse wave delay was significantly longer in controls compared to AT biomarker-confirmed groups (A+/T-/CN P < .001, A+/T+/CN P < .001, A+/T+/IM P = .003). Intracranial low-frequency oscillations were diminished in AT biomarker-confirmed groups both CN and impaired (A+/T-/CN P = .039, A+/T+/CN P = .007, A+/T+/IM P = .011). A significantly higher presence of microhemorrhages was measured in A+/T+/CN compared to controls (P = .006).

DISCUSSION

Cerebrovascular markers indicate increased vessel stiffness and reduced vasomotion in AT biomarker-positive subjects during preclinical AD.

Correlations between cognitive function and gray matter alterations in patients with acute lacunar stroke

Researchers emphasized acute lacunar stroke (ALS) patients suffer from poor social/physical outcomes, cognitive decline, and decreased quality of life. We hypothesized brain abnormalities may occur in ALS during this particular stage and may be associated with cognitive deficits upon evaluation. We investigated structural abnormalities in ALS using magnetic resonance imaging and voxel-based morphometry conducted on 28 healthy controls (HC) and 29 patients with ALS and proximal anterior circulation occlusion within 12 hours of symptom onset. Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores were used to evaluate cognitive dysfunction. Decreased gray matter (GM) in ALS vs. HC was predominantly in the superior frontal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, insula, superior temporal gyrus (STG), heschl gyrus, middle temporal gyrus (MTG), posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), hippocampus (HIP), and others. Positive correlation was found between GM density and MMSE scores in STG ( r = 0.59, p = 0.0007), MTG ( r = 0.46, p = 0.01), PCC ( r = 0.42, p = 0.02), HIP ( r = 0.4, p = 0.03), and medial prefrontal cortex ( r = 0.5, p = 0.005). This study provided further information on pathophysiological/morphological mechanisms related to cognitive impairment in ALS and is the basis for further studies in aging-related diseases.

Differential diagnosis of multiple sclerosis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Despite immense progress of imaging and updates in the MacDonald criteria, the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis remains difficult as it must integrate history, clinical presentation, biological markers, and imaging. There is a multitude of syndromes resembling multiple sclerosis both clinically or on imaging. The goal of this review is to help clinicians orient themselves in these various diagnoses. We organized our review in two categories: inflammatory and autoimmune diseases that are close or can be confused with multiple sclerosis, and non-inflammatory syndromes that can present with symptoms or imaging mimicking those of multiple sclerosis.

METHOD

Review of literature CONCLUSION: Progress of imaging and biological sciences have drastically changed the approach and management of multiple sclerosis. But these developments have also shined a light on a variety of diseases previously unknown or poorly known, therefore greatly expanding the differential diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. While autoimmune, many of these diseases have underlying biological mechanisms that are very different from those of multiple sclerosis, rendering MS therapies usually inefficient. It is crucial to approach these diseases with utmost thoroughness, integrating history, clinical exam, and evolving ancillary tests.

The Routine Follow-up Head CT: Is it Still a Necessary Step in the Thrombolysis Pathway?

Background

The 24-h head computed tomography (CT) scan following intravenous tissue plasminogen activator or mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is currently part of most acute stroke protocols. However, as evidence emerges regarding who is at highest risk for treatment complications, the utility of routine neuroimaging for all patients has become less clear.

Methods

Four hundred seventy-five patients presenting with acute ischemic stroke to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center between 2004 and 2018 and treated with intravenous tissue plasminogen activator and/or MT were evaluated. Neuroimaging performed during the first 48 h of hospitalization was reviewed for edema, hemorrhagic transformation (HT), or other findings altering management. Early imaging (< 24 h), performed for neurologic deterioration, was compared with imaging performed per protocol (24 ± 6 h). Factors predictive of radiographically and clinically significant findings on per-protocol imaging were determined.

Results

One hundred fifty-three patients (32%) underwent early imaging. These patients generally had more severe strokes. HT was found in 15% of cases. For the remaining patients (n = 322), imaging at 24 h impacted acute management for only 24 patients: resulting in emergent hemicraniectomy in 1 (0.3%) and leading to additional imaging to monitor asymptomatic HT or edema in 23 (7.1%). Advanced age, higher stroke severity, MT, and atrial fibrillation were associated with significant findings on the 24-h CT scan. Only 2 of the 24 patients had an initial National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score of < 7.

Conclusions

The 24-h head CT scan does not change management for most patients, particularly those with low National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale scores who do not undergo MT. Consideration should be given to removing routine follow-up imaging from postthrombolysis protocols in favor of an examination-based approach.

Obesity and Race May Explain Differential Burden of White Matter Hyperintensity Load

OBJECTIVE

Compared to European Americans, research indicates that African Americans have higher white matter hyperintensity (WMH) load; however, the clinical and biological bases underlying this higher burden are poorly understood. We hypothesize that obesity may explain differences in WMH between African and European Americans.

METHODS

Participants enrolled in longitudinal brain aging studies (n=292; 61% Female; 92% European American; mean age=69.6±7.7) completed evaluations including medical exams, neuroimaging, and sociodemographic surveys. Overweight/obese status defined as body mass index ≥30 kg/m2, and WMH load, captured by FLAIR images, as sum of deep and periventricular volumes, scored using the Fazekas scale (0-6), WMH≥4 considered high.

RESULTS

Logistic regression analyses, adjusted for age, sex, hypertension, and smoking history, indicated that age and interaction between race and obesity were significant predictors of WMH, demonstrating that obesity significantly moderated the relationship between race and WMH. Age independently increased the odds of high WMH by 16% (OR=1.16, 95% CI=1.09-1.23, p<0.001). Stratified analysis indicates that older European Americans had increased WMH (OR=1.17, 95% CI=1.09-1.23, p<0.001), while obese African Americans had increased WMH (OR=27.65, 95% CI=1.47-519.13, p<0.05). In a case controlled subgroup matched by age, sex, and education (n=48), African Americans had significantly higher WMH load (27% vs 4%, Χ 2=5.3, p=0.02).

CONCLUSION

Results denote that age predicted WMH among European Americans, while obesity predicted WMH among African Americans. Matched sample analyses indicate that obesity increases the odds of WMH, though more pronounced in African Americans. These findings suggest that obesity may explain the differential burden of white matter hyperintensity load, signifying public health and clinical importance.

Comparing Vascular Brain Injury and Stroke by Cranial Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Physician-Adjudication, and Self-Report: Data from the Strong Heart Study

BACKGROUND

Epidemiologic studies often use self-report as proxy for clinical history. However, whether self-report correctly identifies prevalence in minority populations with health disparities and poor health-care access is unknown. Furthermore, overlap of clinical vascular events with covert vascular brain injury (VBI), detected by imaging, is largely unexamined.

METHODS

The Strong Heart Study recruited American Indians from 3 regions, with surveillance and adjudication of stroke events from 1989 to 2013. In 2010-2013, all 817 survivors, aged 65-95 years, underwent brain imaging, neurological history interview, and cognitive testing. VBI was defined as imaged infarct or hemorrhage.

RESULTS

Adjudicated stroke was prevalent in 4% of participants and separately collected, self-reported stroke in 8%. Imaging-defined VBI was detected in 51% and not associated with any stroke event in 47%. Compared with adjudication, self-report had 76% sensitivity and 95% specificity. Participants with adjudicated or self-reported stroke had the poorest performance on cognitive testing; those with imaging-only (covert) VBI had intermediate performance.

CONCLUSION

In this community-based cohort, self-report for prior stroke had good performance metrics. A majority of participants with VBI did not have overt, clinically recognized events but did have neurological or cognitive symptoms. Data collection methodology for studies in a resource-limited setting must balance practical limitations in costs, accuracy, feasibility, and research goals.

Leukoaraiosis and acute ischemic stroke

Ischaemic stroke is characterized by high morbidity, high disability rate, high mortality and high recurrence rate, which can have a grave impact on the quality of life of the patients and consequently becomes an economic burden on their families and society. With the developments in imaging technology in recent years, patients with acute cerebral infarction are predominantly more likely to be diagnosed with leukoaraiosis (LA). LA is a common degenerative disease of the nervous system, which is related to cognitive decline, depression, abnormal gait, ischaemic stroke and atherosclerosis. The aetiology of LA is not clear and there is no gold standard for imaging assessment. Related studies have shown that LA has an adverse effect on the prognosis of cerebral infarction, but some experts have contrary beliefs. Hence, we undertook the present review of the literature on the mechanism and the effect of LA on the prognosis of patients with acute ischaemic stroke.

Emerging role of white matter lesions in cerebrovascular disease

White matter lesions have been implicated in the setting of stroke, dementia, intracerebral haemorrhage, several other cerebrovascular conditions, migraine, various neuroimmunological diseases like multiple sclerosis, disorders of metabolism, mitochondrial diseases and others. While much is understood vis a vis neuroimmunological conditions, our knowledge of the pathophysiology of these lesions, and their role in, and implications to, management of cerebrovascular diseases or stroke, especially in the elderly, are limited. Several clinical assessment tools are available for delineating white matter lesions in clinical practice. However, their incorporation into clinical decision-making and specifically prognosis and management of patients is suboptimal for use in standards of care. This article sought to provide an overview of the current knowledge and recent advances on pathophysiology, as well as clinical and radiological assessment, of white matter lesions with a focus on its development, progression and clinical implications in cerebrovascular diseases. Key indications for clinical practice and recommendations on future areas of research are also discussed. Finally, a conceptual proposal on putative mechanisms underlying pathogenesis of white matter lesions in cerebrovascular disease has been presented. Understanding of pathophysiology of white matter lesions and how they mediate outcomes is important to develop therapeutic strategies.

EEG Synchronization-Parameters in Patients With Subcortical Arteriosclerotic Encephalopathy and Gait Disorder

PURPOSE

Subcortical arteriosclerotic encephalopathy (SAE) is characterized by extensive white matter lesions in the MRI. Clinical symptoms are cognitive impairment, ranging from mild deficits to vascular dementia, impaired executive functioning, and gait disorders. In the EEG of SAE patients with vascular dementia, the lower frequencies are increased. However, it is unclear whether EEG changes also exist in SAE patients with gait disorders but without vascular dementia.

METHODS

The authors analyzed the EEGs of 50 nondemented patients with SAE and gait disorders and 50 healthy controls applying pointwise transinformation as a measure of synchronization.

RESULTS

Hundred seconds of waking EEG that appeared unaltered in visual analysis were sufficient to prove changes in synchronization. The authors found a decrease in the mean level of synchronization, combined with an elongation of synchronization time in all examined brain areas. These effects correlated slightly with the extent of subcortical lesions.

CONCLUSIONS

Changes in EEG synchronization in patients with SAE and gait disorders seem to occur independently of cognitive function. The causal relationship of the changes in EEG synchronization and gait disorders remains to be clarified. The results of this study might point to a decrease in coupling efficiency in these patients, with the increase in synchronization duration as a possible compensatory mechanism. Because a time-efficient signal transmission particularly during gait execution is crucial, reduced efficiency might contribute to an impairment of postural stabilization. The study results might indicate a neuronal network for planning and execution of motor activity and particularly gait, extending from the frontal over the central to the parietal cortex.

The Indigenous South American Tsimane Exhibit Relatively Modest Decrease in Brain Volume With Age Despite High Systemic Inflammation

Brain atrophy is correlated with risk of cognitive impairment, functional decline, and dementia. Despite a high infectious disease burden, Tsimane forager-horticulturists of Bolivia have the lowest prevalence of coronary atherosclerosis of any studied population and present few cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors despite a high burden of infections and therefore inflammation. This study (a) examines the statistical association between brain volume (BV) and age for Tsimane and (b) compares this association to that of 3 industrialized populations in the United States and Europe. This cohort-based panel study enrolled 746 participants aged 40-94 (396 males), from whom computed tomography (CT) head scans were acquired. BV and intracranial volume (ICV) were calculated from automatic head CT segmentations. The linear regression coefficient estimate β^T of the Tsimane (T), describing the relationship between age (predictor) and BV (response, as a percentage of ICV), was calculated for the pooled sample (including both sexes) and for each sex. β^T was compared to the corresponding regression coefficient estimate β^R of samples from the industrialized reference (R) countries. For all comparisons, the null hypothesis β T = β R was rejected both for the combined samples of males and females, as well as separately for each sex. Our results indicate that the Tsimane exhibit a significantly slower decrease in BV with age than populations in the United States and Europe. Such reduced rates of BV decrease, together with a subsistence lifestyle and low CVD risk, may protect brain health despite considerable chronic inflammation related to infectious burden.

Neuroimaging in the Oldest-Old: A Review of the Literature

The oldest-old, those 85 years and older, are the fastest growing segment of the population and present with the highest prevalence of dementia. Given the importance of neuroimaging measures to understand aging and dementia, the objective of this study was to review neuroimaging studies performed in oldest-old participants. We used PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science search engines to identify in vivo CT, MRI, and PET neuroimaging studies either performed in the oldest-old or that addressed the oldest-old as a distinct group in analyses. We identified 60 studies and summarized the main group characteristics and findings. Generally, oldest-old participants presented with greater atrophy compared to younger old participants, with most studies reporting a relatively stable constant decline in brain volumes over time. Oldest-old participants with greater global atrophy and atrophy in key brain structures such as the medial temporal lobe were more likely to have dementia or cognitive impairment. The oldest-old presented with a high burden of white matter lesions, which were associated with various lifestyle factors and some cognitive measures. Amyloid burden as assessed by PET, while high in the oldest-old compared to younger age groups, was still predictive of transition from normal to impaired cognition, especially when other adverse neuroimaging measures (atrophy and white matter lesions) were also present. While this review highlights past neuroimaging research in the oldest-old, it also highlights the dearth of studies in this important population. It is imperative to perform more neuroimaging studies in the oldest-old to better understand aging and dementia.

Agreement between neuroimages and reports for natural language processing-based detection of silent brain infarcts and white matter disease

BACKGROUND

There are numerous barriers to identifying patients with silent brain infarcts (SBIs) and white matter disease (WMD) in routine clinical care. A natural language processing (NLP) algorithm may identify patients from neuroimaging reports, but it is unclear if these reports contain reliable information on these findings.

METHODS

Four radiology residents reviewed 1000 neuroimaging reports (RI) of patients age > 50 years without clinical histories of stroke, TIA, or dementia for the presence, acuity, and location of SBIs, and the presence and severity of WMD. Four neuroradiologists directly reviewed a subsample of 182 images (DR). An NLP algorithm was developed to identify findings in reports. We assessed interrater reliability for DR and RI, and agreement between these two and with NLP.

RESULTS

For DR, interrater reliability was moderate for the presence of SBIs (k = 0.58, 95 % CI 0.46-0.69) and WMD (k = 0.49, 95 % CI 0.35-0.63), and moderate to substantial for characteristics of SBI and WMD. Agreement between DR and RI was substantial for the presence of SBIs and WMD, and fair to substantial for characteristics of SBIs and WMD. Agreement between NLP and DR was substantial for the presence of SBIs (k = 0.64, 95 % CI 0.53-0.76) and moderate (k = 0.52, 95 % CI 0.39-0.65) for the presence of WMD.

CONCLUSIONS

Neuroimaging reports in routine care capture the presence of SBIs and WMD. An NLP can identify these findings (comparable to direct imaging review) and can likely be used for cohort identification.

Incidental Brain Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings and the Cognitive and Motor Performance in the Elderly: The Shanghai Changfeng Study

Background

The frequently discovered incidental findings (IFs) from imaging observations are increasing. The IFs show the potential clues of structural abnormalities underlying cognitive decline in elders. Detecting brain IFs and their relationship with cognitive and behavioral functions helps provide the information for clinical strategies.

Methods

Five hundred and seventy-nine participants were recruited in the Shanghai Changfeng Study. All participants performed the demographic, biochemical, and cognitive functions and gait speed assessment and underwent the high-resolution multimodal magnetic resonance imaging scans. We calculated the detection rate of brain IFs. The association between cardiovascular risk factors and IFs and the associations between IFs and cognitive and motor functions were assessed using regression models. The relationships among gray matter volume, cognitive function, and gait speed were assessed with/without adjusting the IFs to evaluate the effects of potential IFs confounders.

Results

IFs were found in a total of 578 subjects with a detection rate of 99.8%. Age and blood pressure were the most significant cardiovascular risk factors correlated with IFs. IFs were found to be negatively associated with Montreal Cognitive Assessment, Mini-Mental State Examination, and gait speed. The gray matter volume was found to be positively correlated with the cognitive function without adjusting the white matter hyperintensity but not if adjusted.

Conclusion

IFs are commonly found in the elderly population and related to brain functions. The adequate intervention of IFs related cardiovascular risk factors that may slow down the progression of brain function decline. We also suggest that IFs should be considered as confounding factors that may affect cognitive issues on the structural neuroimaging researches in aging or diseases.

Assessment of vascular stiffness in the internal carotid artery proximal to the carotid canal in Alzheimer's disease using pulse wave velocity from low rank reconstructed 4D flow MRI

Clinical evidence shows vascular factors may co-occur and complicate the expression of Alzheimer's disease (AD); yet, the pathologic mechanisms and involvement of different compartments of the vascular network are not well understood. Diseases such as arteriosclerosis diminish vascular compliance and will lead to arterial stiffness, a well-established risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity. Arterial stiffness can be assessed using pulse wave velocity (PWV); however, this is usually done from carotid-to-femoral artery ratios. To probe the brain vasculature, intracranial PWV measures would be ideal. In this study, high temporal resolution 4D flow MRI was used to assess transcranial PWV in 160 subjects including AD, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), healthy controls, and healthy subjects with apolipoprotein ɛ4 positivity (APOE4+) and parental history of AD dementia (FH+). High temporal resolution imaging was achieved by high temporal binning of retrospectively gated data using a local-low rank approach. Significantly higher transcranial PWV in AD dementia and MCI subjects was found when compared to old-age-matched controls (AD vs. old-age-matched controls: P <0.001, AD vs. MCI: P = 0.029, MCI vs. old-age-matched controls P = 0.013). Furthermore, vascular changes were found in clinically healthy middle-age adults with APOE4+ and FH+ indicating significantly higher transcranial PWV compared to controls (P <0.001).

White Matter Atrophy in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients are highly susceptible to developing dementia, especially for those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), but its underlying cause is still unclear. In this study, we performed a battery of neuropsychological tests and high-resolution sagittal T1-weighted structural imaging to explore how T2DM affects white matter volume (WMV) and cognition in 30 T2DM-MCI patients, 30 T2DM with normal cognition (T2DM-NC) patients, and 30 age-, sex-, and education-matched healthy control (HC) individuals. The WMV of the whole brain was obtained with automated segmentation methods. Correlations between the WMV of each brain region and neuropsychological tests were analyzed in the T2DM patients. The T2DM-NC patients and HC individuals did not reveal any significant differences in WMV. Compared with the T2DM-NC group, the T2DM-MCI group showed statistically significant reduction in the WMV of seven brain regions, mainly located in the frontotemporal lobe and limbic system, five of which significantly correlated with Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) scores. Subsequently, we evaluated the discriminative ability of these five regions for MCI in T2DM patients. The WMV of four regions, including left posterior cingulate, precuneus, insula, and right rostral middle frontal gyrus had high diagnostic value for MCI detection in T2DM patients (AUC > 0.7). Among these four regions, left precuneus WMV presented the best diagnostic value (AUC: 0.736; sensitivity: 70.00%; specificity: 73.33%; Youden index: 0.4333), but with no significant difference relative to the minimum AUC. In conclusion, T2DM could give rise to the white matter atrophy of several brain regions. Each WMV of left posterior cingulate, precuneus, insula, and right rostral middle frontal gyrus could be an independent imaging biomarker to detect cognitive impairment at the early stage in T2DM patients and play an important role in its pathophysiological mechanism.

Early Post-stroke Cognition: In-hospital Predictors and the Association With Functional Outcome

Purpose: To characterize and predict early post-stroke cognitive impairment by describing cognitive changes in stroke patients 4-8 weeks post-infarct, determining the relationship between cognitive ability and functional status at this early time point, and identifying the in-hospital risk factors associated with early dysfunction. Materials and Methods: Data were collected for 214 patients with ischemic stroke and 39 non-stroke controls. Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) exams were administered at post-hospitalization clinic visits approximately 4-8 weeks after infarct. MoCA scores were compared for patients with: no stroke, minor stroke [NIH Stroke Scale (NIHSS) < 5], and major stroke. Ordinal logistic regression was performed to assess the relationship between MoCA score and functional status [modified Rankin Scale score (mRS)] at follow-up. Predictors of MoCA < 26 and < 19 (cutoffs for mild and severe cognitive impairment, respectively) at follow-up were identified by multivariable logistic regression using variables available during hospitalization. Results: Post stroke cognitive impairment was common, with 66.8% of patients scoring < 26 on the MoCA and 22.9% < 19. The average total MoCA score at follow-up was 18.7 (SD 7.0) among major strokes, 23.6 (SD 4.8) among minor strokes, and 27.2 (SD 13.0) among non-strokes (p = <0.0001). The follow-up MoCA score was associated with the follow-up mRS in adjusted analysis (OR 0.69; 95% C.I. 0.59-0.82). Among patients with no prior cognitive impairment (N = 201), a lack of pre-stroke employment, admission NIHSS > 6, and left-sided infarct predicted a follow-up MoCA < 26 (c-statistic 0.75); while admission NIHSS > 6 and infarct volume > 17 cc predicted a MoCA < 19 (c-statistic 0.75) at follow-up. Conclusion: Many patients experience early post-stroke cognitive dysfunction that significantly impacts function during a critical time period for decision-making regarding return to work and future independence. Dysfunction measured at 4-8 weeks can be predicted during the inpatient hospitalization. These high-risk individuals should be identified for targeted rehabilitation and counseling to improve longer-term post-stroke outcomes.

Coagulation factor VIII, white matter hyperintensities and cognitive function: Results from the Cardiovascular Health Study

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the relationship between high FVIII clotting activity (FVIII:C), MRI-defined white matter hyperintensities (WMH) and cognitive function over time.

METHODS

Data from the population-based Cardiovascular Health Study (n = 5,888, aged ≥65) were used. FVIII:C was measured in blood samples taken at baseline. WMH burden was assessed on two cranial MRI scans taken roughly 5 years apart. Cognitive function was assessed annually using the Modified Mini-Mental State Examination (3MSE) and Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSST). We used ordinal logistic regression models adjusted for demographic and cardiovascular factors in cross-sectional and longitudinal WMH analyses, and adjusted linear regression and linear mixed models in the analyses of cognitive function.

RESULTS

After adjustment for confounding, higher levels of FVIII:C were not strongly associated with the burden of WMH on the initial MRI scan (OR>p75 = 1.20, 95% CI 0.99-1.45; N = 2,735) nor with WMH burden worsening over time (OR>p75 = 1.18, 95% CI 0.87-1.59; N = 1,527). High FVIII:C showed no strong association with cognitive scores cross-sectionally (3MSE>p75 β = -0.06, 95%CI -0.45 to 0.32, N = 4,005; DSST>p75 β = -0.69, 95%CI -1.52 to 0.13, N = 3,954) or over time (3MSE>p75 β = -0.07,95% CI -0.58 to 0.44, N = 2,764; DSST>p75 β = -0.22, 95% CI -0.97 to 0.53, N = 2,306) after confounding adjustment.

INTERPRETATION

The results from this cohort study of older adult participants indicate no strong relationships between higher FVIII:C levels and WMH burden or cognitive function in cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses.

White Matter Hyperintensities Contribute to Language Deficits in Primary Progressive Aphasia

OBJECTIVE

To determine the contribution of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) to language deficits while accounting for cortical atrophy in individuals with primary progressive aphasia (PPA).

METHOD

Forty-three individuals with PPA completed neuropsychological assessments of nonverbal semantics, naming, and sentence repetition plus T2-weighted and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery scans. Using three visual scales, we rated WMH and cerebral ventricle size for both scan types. We used Spearman correlations to evaluate associations between the scales and scans. To test whether visual ratings-particularly of WMH-are associated with language, we compared a base model (including gray matter component scores obtained via principal component analysis, age, and days between assessment and MRI as independent variables) with full models (ie, the base model plus visual ratings) for each language variable.

RESULTS

Visual ratings were significantly associated within and between scans and were significantly correlated with age but not with other vascular risk factors. Only the T2 scan ratings were associated with language abilities. Specifically, controlling for other variables, poorer naming was significantly related to larger ventricles (P = 0.033) and greater global (P = 0.033) and periventricular (P = 0.049) WMH. High global WMH (P = 0.034) were also correlated with worse sentence repetition skills.

CONCLUSION

Visual ratings of global brain health were associated with language deficits in PPA independent of cortical atrophy and age. While WMH are not unique to PPA, measuring WMH in conjunction with cortical atrophy may elucidate more accurate brain structure-behavior relationships in PPA than cortical atrophy measures alone.

Superficial Siderosis and Microbleed Restricted in Cortex Might Be Correlated to Atrophy and Cognitive Decline in Sneddon's Syndrome

Objective: Sneddon's syndrome is a rare non-inflammatory arteriopathy affecting small and medium-sized arteries, characterized by a generalized livedo reticularis and recurrent transient ischemic attack or ischemic stroke. Hemorrhagic stroke was reported in limited cases, but microbleeds and superficial siderosis were rarely issued. We aimed to investigate the hemorrhagic imaging features of Sneddon's syndrome and explore the possible mechanism and clinical relevance. Methods: Clinical data and cerebral MR imaging including T2* sequence of seven consecutive patients with Sneddon's syndrome were reviewed. Results: The most common neurological manifestations were cognitive impairment and stroke attack (71.4%), followed by seizures and movement disorder (28.6%). Cerebral microbleeds were detected in six patients on T2* sequence, all of them presented with cortical microbleeds, only one of them with microbleeds in basal ganglion. More than five microbleeds were observed in four of these six patients. The majority of the microbleeds were predominantly cortical restricted and especially located in the cortical watersheds. Multiple superficial siderosis were identified mainly involving cortical watersheds in five cases. Significant cerebral atrophy with prominent secondary white matter hyperintensities in bilateral cortical watersheds were also observed. Abnormal tortuous and multiple focal occlusion of bilateral distal MCA were shown in one patient by DSA. No stenosis of proximal segment of cerebral arteries was detected in all the patients. Conclusions: This is the first report illustrating abundant cortical microbleeds and superficial siderosis mainly involved the anterior and posterior cortical watersheds in Sneddon's syndrome. The surprisingly identical topographic distribution of hemorrhagic lesions and the obvious atrophy suggest cerebral atrophy might be secondary to the microangiopathy related hemorrhagic lesions and further contribute to the neurological deficit, especially the early cognitive decline in Sneddon syndrome.

Intracranial vascular flow oscillations in Alzheimer's disease from 4D flow MRI

Recent modeling and experimental evidence suggests clearance of soluble metabolites from the brain can be driven by low frequency flow oscillations (LFOs) through the intramural periarterial drainage (IPAD) pathway. This study investigates the use of 4D flow MRI to derive LFOs from arterial and venous measures of blood flow. 3D radial 4D flow MRI data were acquired on a 3.0 T scanner and reconstructed using a low-rank constraint to produce time resolved measurements of blood flow. Physical phantom experiments were performed to validate the time resolved 4D flow against a standard 2D phase contrast (PC) approach. To evaluate the ability of 4D flow to distinguish physiologic flow changes from noise, healthy volunteers were scanned during a breath-hold (BH) maneuver and compared against 2D PC measures. Finally, flow measures were performed in intracranial arteries and veins of 112 participants including subjects diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD) clinical syndrome (n = 23), and healthy controls (n = 89) on whom apolipoprotein ɛ4 positivity (APOE4+) and parental history of AD dementia (FH+) was known. To assess LFOs, flow range, standard deviation, demeaned temporal flow changes, and power spectral density were quantified from the time series. Group differences were assessed using ANOVA followed by Tukey-Kramer method for pairwise comparison for adjusted means (P < 0.05). Significantly lower LFOs as measured from flow variation range and standard deviations were observed in the arteries of AD subjects when compared to age-matched controls (P = 0.005, P = 0.011). Results suggest altered vascular function in AD subjects. 4D flow based spontaneous LFO measures might hold potential for longitudinal studies aimed at predicting cognitive trajectories in AD and study disease mechanisms.

Association Between Amyloid-β, Small-vessel Disease, and Neurodegeneration Biomarker Positivity, and Progression to Mild Cognitive Impairment in Cognitively Normal Individuals

BACKGROUND

We estimated the prevalence and incidence of amyloid-β deposition (A), small-vessel disease (V), and neurodegeneration (N) biomarker positivity in community-dwelling cognitively normal individuals (CN). We determined the longitudinal association between the respective biomarker indices with progression to all-cause mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and its amnestic and nonamnestic subtypes.

METHODS

CN participants, recruited by advertising, underwent brain [C-11]Pittsburgh Compound-B (PiB)-positron emission tomography (PET), magnetic resonance imaging, and [F-18]fluoro-2-deoxy-glucose (FDG)-PET, and were designated as having high or low amyloid-β (A+/A-), greater or lower white matter hyperintensities burden (V+/V-) and diminished or normal cortical glucose metabolism (N+/N-). MCI was adjudicated using clinical assessments. We examined the association between A, V, and N biomarker positivity at study baseline and endpoint, with progression to MCI using linear regression, Cox proportional hazards and Kaplan-Meier analyses adjusted for age and APOE-ε4 carrier status.

RESULTS

In 98 CN individuals (average age 74 years, 65% female), A+, V+, and N+ prevalence was 26%, 33%, and 8%, respectively. At study endpoint (median: 5.5 years), an A+, but not a V+ or N+ scan, was associated with higher odds of all-cause MCI (Chi-square = 3.9, p = .048, odds ratio, 95% confidence interval = 2.6 [1.01-6.8]). Baseline A+, V+, or N+ were not associated with all-cause MCI, however, baseline A+ (p = .018) and A+N+ (p = .049), and endpoint A+N+ (p = .025) were associated with time to progression to amnestic, not nonamnestic, MCI.

CONCLUSION

Longitudinal assessments clarify the association between amyloid-β and progression to all-cause MCI in CN individuals. The association between biomarker positivity indices of amyloid-β and neurodegeneration, and amnestic MCI reflects the underlying pathology involved in the progression to prodromal Alzheimer's disease.

Atrial Fibrillation, Brain Volumes, and Subclinical Cerebrovascular Disease (from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Neurocognitive Study [ARIC-NCS])

The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between atrial fibrillation (AF) and total and regional brain volumes among participants in the community-based Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Neurocognitive study (ARIC-NCS). A total of 1,930 participants (130 with AF) with a mean age of 76.3 ± 5.2, who underwent 3T brain MRI scans in 2011 to 2013 were included. Prevalent AF was ascertained from study ECGs and hospital discharge codes. Brain volumes were measured using FreeSurfer image analysis software. Markers of subclinical cerebrovascular disease included lobar microhemorrhages, subcortical microhemorrhages, cortical infarcts, subcortical infarcts, lacunar infarcts, and volume of white matter hyperintensities. Linear regression models were used to assess the associations between AF status and brain volumes. In adjusted analyses, AF was not associated with markers of subclinical cerebrovascular disease. However, AF was associated with smaller regional brain volumes (including temporal, occipital, and parietal lobes; deep gray matter; Alzheimer disease signature region; and hippocampus [all p <0.05]) after controlling for demographics, cardiovascular risk factors, prevalent cardiovascular disease, and markers of subclinical cerebrovascular disease. Subgroup analysis revealed a significant interaction between AF and total brain volume with respect to age (p = 0.02), with associations between AF and smaller brain volumes being stronger for older individuals. In conclusion, AF was associated with smaller brain volumes, and the association was stronger among older individuals. This finding may be related to the longer exposure period of the older population to AF or the possibility that older people are more susceptible to the effects of AF on brain volume.

Patients with the Subcortical Small Vessel Type of Dementia Have Disturbed Cardiometabolic Risk Profile

BACKGROUND

Population-based studies have shown that cardiometabolic status is associated with the amount of white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, little is known of cardiometabolic risk factors in the subcortical small vessel type of dementia (SSVD), in which WMHs are one of the most prominent manifestations.

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether the profile of cardiometabolic risk factors differed between SSVD, Alzheimer's disease (AD), mixed dementia (combined AD and SSVD), and healthy controls.

METHODS

This was a mono-center, cross-sectional study of SSVD (n = 40), AD (n = 113), mixed dementia (n = 62), and healthy controls (n = 94). In the statistical analyses, we adjusted for covariates using ANCOVA and binary logistic regression.

RESULTS

The prevalence of hypertension was increased in SSVD and mixed dementia (p < 0.001 and p < 0.05 versus controls, respectively). Diabetes was more prevalent in SSVD patients, and body mass index was lower in AD and mixed dementia, compared to the controls (all p < 0.05). Serum total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) were reduced in the SSVD group (both p < 0.05 versus control). These differences remained after adjustment for covariates. In the SSVD group, Trail Making Test A score correlated positively with systolic blood pressure, mean arterial pressure, and pulse pressure.

CONCLUSION

All dementia groups had an altered cardiometabolic risk profile compared to the controls. The SSVD patients showed increased prevalence of hypertension and diabetes, and in line with previous population-based data, TC and LDL-C in serum were reduced.

Anatomic and neuropsychological findings in low-educated cognitively intact elderly from a Brazilian cohort

In elderly individuals, low educational level may represent a risk factor for the development of dementia and a proxy of cognitive reserve. Objective: This study examined the cognitive and neuroanatomic correlates of high versus low educational levels in cognitively healthy community-dwelling older adults in Brazil. Methods: Fifty-three older adults (mean age: 68±5.3 years) were divided into a “low education” group [LE; 1-4 years of education (N=33)] and “high education” group [HE; >11 years of education (N=20)]. Both groups completed a comprehensive neuropsychological battery and underwent in vivo structural MRI close to the time of testing. Results: Higher educational level increased the chance of having better scores on neuropsychological tests, including verbal and visual delayed recall of information, verbal learning, category fluency, global cognition, and vocabulary. Better scores on these tests were observed in the HE group relative to the LE group. Despite this, there were no group differences between MRI measures. Conclusion: Older adults with higher educational levels showed better scores on neuropsychological measures of cognition, highlighting the need for education-adjusted norms in developing countries. Given the absence of differences in structural anatomy between the groups, these findings appear to be best explained by theories of cognitive reserve.

Association of brain white matter lesions and atrophy with cognitive function in chronic kidney disease

OBJECTIVES

Cognitive impairment is common in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), possibly leading to poor outcomes. However, the correlation between brain structural abnormalities and cognitive impairment remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the impairment of specific cognitive domains and their association with brain structural abnormalities.

METHODS

Patients with CKD of at least stage 3 who were not on hemodialysis were enrolled. All participants underwent comprehensive neuropsychological testing in five cognitive domains. Ventricular atrophy, sulcal atrophy, medial temporal atrophy, and white matter changes were assessed using brain magnetic resonance imaging according to standard protocols.

RESULTS

Eighty-seven patients and 50 controls were enrolled. Patients with CKD exhibited decreased cognitive function relative to controls. Compared with patients with stage 3 CKD, those with advanced stage (stages 4 or 5) had poorer cognitive performance, more pronounced white matter hyperintensity (WMH) and more severe ventricular atrophy. Among CKD patients, executive function (β = -.23, P = .043) and attention (β = -.29, P = .004) were associated with WMH in controlled analyses. However, no cognitive impairment was associated with ventricular atrophy.

CONCLUSION

Patients with CKD exhibited cognitive impairment and brain structural abnormalities including WMH and general brain atrophy. Impairment of attention and executive dysfunction were associated with WMH.

Cerebral Small Vessel, But Not Large Vessel Disease, Is Associated With Impaired Cerebral Autoregulation During Cardiopulmonary Bypass: A Retrospective Cohort Study

BACKGROUND

Impaired cerebral blood flow (CBF) autoregulation during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is associated with stroke and other adverse outcomes. Large and small arterial stenosis is prevalent in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. We hypothesize that large and/or small vessel cerebral arterial disease is associated with impaired cerebral autoregulation during CPB.

METHODS

A retrospective cohort analysis of data from 346 patients undergoing cardiac surgery with CPB enrolled in an ongoing prospectively randomized clinical trial of autoregulation monitoring were evaluated. The study protocol included preoperative transcranial Doppler (TCD) evaluation of major cerebral artery flow velocity by a trained vascular technician and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) between postoperative days 3 and 5. Brain MRI images were evaluated for chronic white matter hyperintensities (WMHI) by a vascular neurologist blinded to autoregulation data. "Large vessel" cerebral vascular disease was defined by the presence of characteristic TCD changes associated with stenosis of the major cerebral arteries. "Small vessel" cerebral vascular disease was defined based on accepted scoring methods of WMHI. All patients had continuous TCD-based autoregulation monitoring during surgery.

RESULTS

Impaired autoregulation occurred in 32.4% (112/346) of patients. Preoperative TCD demonstrated moderate-severe large vessel stenosis in 67 (25.2%) of 266 patients with complete data. In adjusted analysis, female sex (odds ratio [OR], 0.46; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.25-0.86; P = .014) and higher average temperature during CPB (OR, 1.23; 95% CI, 1.02-1.475; P = .029), but not moderate-severe large cerebral arterial stenosis (P = .406), were associated with impaired autoregulation during CPB. Of the 119 patients with available brain MRI data, 42 (35.3%) demonstrated WMHI. The presence of small vessel cerebral vascular disease was associated with impaired CBF autoregulation (OR, 3.25; 95% CI, 1.21-8.71; P = .019) after adjustment for age, history of peripheral vascular disease, preoperative hemoglobin level, and preoperative treatment with calcium channel blocking drugs.

CONCLUSIONS

These data confirm that impaired CBF autoregulation is prevalent during CPB predisposing affected patients to brain hypoperfusion or hyperperfusion with low or high blood pressure, respectively. Small vessel, but not large vessel, cerebral vascular disease, male sex, and higher average body temperature during CPB appear to be associated with impaired autoregulation.

Small Vessel Cerebrovascular Pathology Identified by Magnetic Resonance Imaging Is Prevalent in Alzheimer's Disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Potential Target for Intervention

BACKGROUND

There is evidence that Alzheimer's disease (AD) has significant cerebrovascular etiopathogenesis. Understanding potentially modifiable risk factors for vascular disease can help design long-term intervention strategies for controlling or preventing cognitive dysfunction attributable to cerebrovascular disease.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the presence and severity of markers of cerebrovascular pathology, its relationship to diagnostic categories of dementia, including AD, and association with the metabolic biomarker homocysteine.

METHODS

In a cross-sectional observational study, 340 community-dwelling elders received a clinical evaluation including brain MRI and neuropsychological tests. Dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) were diagnosed by consensus committee. Fasting total plasma homocysteine was measured. Statistical analyses were adjusted for demographics and cerebrovascular risk factors.

RESULTS

Nearly 25% of those diagnosed with AD had small vessel infarcts (SVI). Periventricular white matter hyperintensity (pvWMHI) was prevalent in participants with AD (61%) or MCI (amnesic 61% and non-amnesic 54%, respectively). Participants with SVI and/or pvWMHI also had greater brain atrophy. Homocysteine concentrations were higher in individuals with cerebrovascular findings than in those without. In individuals with cerebrovascular disease, homocysteine was inversely related to executive function (p = 0.022) and directly related to degree of brain atrophy (p = 0.009).

CONCLUSIONS

We demonstrated a significant prevalence of small vessel markers of cerebrovascular pathology in individuals diagnosed with AD, with a significant concurrence between cerebrovascular disease and brain and ventricular atrophy. While current research on AD has focused on amyloid-βpeptide deposition, tau-pathology, and microglial activation and inflammation, greater attention to the cerebrovascular contribution to this neurodegenerative disease presents an additional target for therapeutic prevention and intervention.

Comparison of different MRI-based morphometric estimates for defining neurodegeneration across the Alzheimer's disease continuum

Background

Several neurodegeneration (N) metrics using structural MRI are used for the purpose of Alzheimer's disease (AD)-related staging, including hippocampal volume, global atrophy, and an “AD signature” composite consisting of thickness or volumetric estimates derived from regions impacted early in AD. This study sought to determine if less user-intensive estimates of global atrophy and hippocampal volume were equivalent to a thickness-based AD signature from FreeSurfer for defining N across the AD continuum (i.e., individuals who are amyloid-positive (A+)).

Methods

Cognitively unimpaired (CU) late middle-aged and older adults, as well as A+ mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and A+ AD dementia individuals, with available CSF and structural MRI scan <1.5 years apart, were selected for the study (n = 325, mean age = 62). First, in a subsample of A+ AD dementia and matched biomarker-negative (i.e., A- and tau tangle pathology (T)-) CU controls (n = 40), we examined ROC characteristics and identified N cut-offs using Youden's J for neurofilament light chain protein (NfL) and each of three MRI-based measures: a thickness-based AD signature from FreeSurfer, hippocampal volume (using FIRST), and a simple estimate of global atrophy (the ratio of intracranial CSF segmented volume to brain tissue volume, using SPM12). Based on the results from the ROC analyses, we then examined the concordance between NfL N positivity and N positivity for each MRI-based metric using Cohen's Kappa in the remaining subsample of 285 individuals. Finally, in the full sample (n = 325), we examined the relationship between the four measures of N and group membership across the AD continuum using Kruskal-Wallis tests and Cliff's deltas.

Results

The three MRI-based metrics and CSF NfL similarly discriminated between the A-T- CU (n = 20) and A+ AD (n = 20) groups (AUCs ≥0.885; ps < 0.001). Using the cut-off values derived from the ROCs to define N positivity, there was weak concordance between NfL and all three MRI-derived metrics of N in the subsample of 285 individuals (Cohen's Kappas ≤0.429). Finally, the three MRI-based measures of N and CSF NfL showed similar associations with AD continuum group (i.e., Kruskal-Wallis ps < 0.001), with relatively larger effect sizes noted when comparing the A-T- CU to the A+ MCI (Cliff's deltas ≥0.741) and A+ AD groups (Cliff's deltas ≥0.810) than to the A+T- CU (Cliff's deltas = 0.112–0.298) and A + T+ CU groups (Cliff's deltas = 0.212–0.731).

Conclusions

These findings suggest that the three MRI-based morphometric estimates and CSF NfL similarly differentiate individuals across the AD continuum on N status. In many applications, a simple estimate of global atrophy may be preferred as an MRI marker of N across the AD continuum given its methodological robustness and ease of calculation when compared to hippocampal volume or a cortical thickness AD signature.

•

Hippocampus, global atrophy and AD signature had strong diagnostic accuracy in AD.

•

There was weak concordance between NfL and all three MRI-derived metrics.

•

NfL and the three MRI-derived metrics performed similarly across the AD spectrum.