Deep medullary vein abnormalities associated with cognitive function and Alzheimer's disease plasma biomarkers in dementia‐free older adults: A population‐based study

INTRODUCTION We investigated the associations of deep medullary vein (DMV) score with cognitive phenotypes and blood biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease among older adults. METHODS This population‐based cross‐sectional study used data from 1206 participants in the Multimodal Interventions to Delay Dementia and Disability in Rural China (MIND‐China) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) substudy; of these, plasma amyloid‐ β (A β ), total tau, neurofilament light chain, phosphorylated tau 217 (p‐tau217), and glial fibrillary acidic protein were measured in subsamples ( n = 901∼1133). RESULTS A higher DMV score was significantly associated with increased likelihoods of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and amnestic MCI, and lower z ‐scores of verbal fluency, memory, attention, executive function, and global cognition (all p < 0.05); such associations were significant only in males. In the biomarker subsamples, a higher DMV score was significantly associated with a lower plasma A β 42/40 ratio ( p < 0.05), but not with the other examined biomarkers. DISCUSSION Discontinuous DMVs might be a biomarker for MCI and poor cognitive function in older men, and the role of Alzheimer's pathology deserves further exploration.