Subclinical atherosclerotic calcification detected by CT is associated with varying risks of stroke and cognitive impairment depending on the location and severity of the involved arteries.
Is subclinical atherosclerotic calcification detected by CT associated with an increased risk of stroke, cognitive impairment, and dementia?
Subclinical atherosclerotic calcification detected by CT is associated with varying risks of stroke and cognitive impairment depending on the location and severity, highlighting the need for further research and preventive strategies.
Extant research shows that following a cerebrovascular insult to the brain, patients may develop a wide range of cognitive disorders, spanning from mild cognitive impairment (CI) to advanced dementia. Several studies have shown that atherosclerosis in the carotid, coronary, and breast arteries is associated with an increased risk of stroke, CI, and dementia. In this review, we examine the association of subclinical atherosclerotic calcification detected by computed tomography (CT) in these arterial beds and the risk of stroke, CI, and dementia. A major advantage of CT is that it can accurately quantify vascular calcification in different parts of the vasculature during a single examination. However, the strength of the association between CT findings and CI and stroke varies with the location and severity of the arteries involved. Data are still limited on this topic, highlighting the need for additional investigations to further our understanding of the risk of cognitive impairment in patients with subclinical atherosclerosis. It is equally important to test preventive strategies for managing patients in whom vascular calcifications are identified incidentally in randomized controlled trials to study the effects on outcomes, including incidents of stroke and CI.
Ngamdu et al. (Mon,) conducted a review in Subclinical atherosclerotic calcification. Computed tomography (CT) detection of subclinical atherosclerotic calcification was evaluated on Stroke, cognitive impairment, and dementia. Subclinical atherosclerotic calcification detected by CT is associated with varying risks of stroke and cognitive impairment depending on the location and severity of the involved arteries.