Exposure to severe air pollution produces neuroinflammation and structural brain alterations in children. We tested whether patterns of brain growth, cognitive deficits and white matter hyperintensities (WMH) are associated with exposures to severe air pollution. Baseline and 1 year follow-up measurements of global and regional brain MRI volumes, cognitive abilities (Wechsler Intelligence Scale...

BACKGROUND White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are commonly observed MRI abnormalities in the elderly, which generally reflect covert vascular brain injury. WMH cumulatively produce substantial neurologic, psychiatric, and medical morbidity. This review provides an overview of current knowledge on vascular WMH, and describes some pharmacological agents that may have a role in mitigating this co...

BACKGROUND High serum homocysteine (HCY) levels have been associated with thromboembolic cerebrovascular disease, but their relationship to microvascular disease is uncertain. Homocysteine also has a direct neurotoxic effect and has been linked to brain atrophy and an increased risk of Alzheimer disease. OBJECTIVE To examine the relationship of HCY levels to brain and cognitive measures in a ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Subcortical hyperintensities (SH) have not been systematically evaluated in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We sought to describe their frequency and distribution, and to test their association with cognitive characteristics in MCI patients. METHODS We performed standardized neuropsychological tests and an MRI scan in 170 consecutive MCI patients. Medial temporal lobe ...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The visual rating scales for perivascular spaces vary considerably. We sought to develop a new scale for visual assessment of perivascular spaces and to further describe their distribution and association with white matter hyperintensities in old age. MATERIALS AND METHODS This population-based study included 530 individuals who did not have dementia and were not instit...

White matter hyperintensities are frequently encountered in clinical practice. In adulthood, white matter hyperintensities are generally related to acquired disorders, such as vascular, inflammatory, or demyelinating diseases. Symmetrical and confluent white matter abnormalities on the first available MRI suggest a genetic disorder. In this article, we provide keys to recognize and classify the...

White matter hyperintensities present both in normal ageing and dementia are associated to cognitive decline. The explanatory pathological pathways of their evolution is however still in discussion and longitudinal studies are needed to properly define its causality mechanisms. This work proposes a subject-specific Bayesian model propagation for the longitudinal study of white matter hyperinten...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Cerebral white matter (WM) hyperintensities are a frequent finding in elderly people, and lowering of cerebral magnetization transfer ratio (MTR) has been observed. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between age-related WM hyperintensities and MTR changes in the brain. METHODS We performed MR imaging in a group of young subjects, a group of elderly ind...