P2–114: Subcortical ischemic disease is associated with regionally specific cortical atrophy distinct from that seen in Alzheimer's disease
Year: 2013
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Subcortical ischemic disease, which is thought to lead to vascular cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are viewed as competing causes of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The presence of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) on MR images is a marker of subcortical ischemic disease. We enrolled 71 study participants who had a CDR of 0.5 from our Alzheimer's Disease Research Center. All subjects were above the age of 60, non-demented, and had hypertension (plus in some cases other vascular risk factors). Each study participant underwent neuropsychological testing and MR imaging procedures. FreeSurfer's General Linear Model algorithm was used to generate a whole-cortex map of the correlation between log-transformed WMH and cortical thickness. In addition, the AD-signature summary measure was derived as previously published in order to test the hypothesis that WMH relate to cortical thickness in these AD-vulnerable regions. Analysis of the T1-MPRAGE revealed that WMH volume correlatedwith cortical thinning in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (R=-0.31, p=0.01; not corrected for multiple testing), a region not typically associated with AD. Cortical regions previously associated with Alzheimer's disease dementia (the so-called AD-signature regions) showed no relationship with WMH volume (R=-0.16, p=0.4). We conclude that subcortical ischemic disease may be associated with regionally specific cortical atrophy distinct from that seen in AD and potentially involved in executive function.
Source: Alzheimer s & Dementia
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2039992058