Vascular Cognitive Impairment
Key Points
- To review the pathophysiology, diagnostic spectrum, and emerging therapeutic approaches for vascular cognitive impairment associated with cerebrovascular disease.
- Synthesized findings from neuroimaging, neuropathological, epidemiological, and genetic investigations of cerebrovascular disease.
- Assessed mechanisms linking discrete vascular brain injuries to disrupted structural and functional network connectivity.
- Vascular cognitive impairment spans from mild cognitive deficits to vascular dementia, driven by microinfarcts, microhemorrhages, strategic tract damage, and secondary neurodegeneration.
- Vascular brain pathology frequently co-occurs with neurodegenerative pathology such as Alzheimer's disease, compromising functional brain networks in both post-stroke and stroke-free populations.
- Cardiovascular risk modification provides an actionable clinical target to potentially prevent or delay both vascular cognitive impairment and mixed dementias.
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Discussion
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Implication
Narrative review uncovers mechanisms of cognitive decline in patients with cerebrovascular disease, highlighting opportunities for dementia prevention through cardiovascular risk management.
Cite This Study
Dichgans et al. (2017) studied this question.