ESOC 2021 | WM network damage mediates the association between CeVD MRI markers and cognitive impairment

Christopher Chen, BA, BMBCh, MRCP, FAMS, FRCPE, National University of Singapore, Singapore, discusses a recent study that investigated the role of white matter network damage in the association between MRI markers of cerebrovascular disease (CeVD) and cognitive impairment. Fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity were used to measure white matter microstructural damage via track-based spatial statistics from diffusion-tensor imaging. CeVD markers, including lacunes, white matter hyperintensities, and intracranial stenosis, were shown to be associated with worse performance in executive function, attention, language, verbal, and visual memory. These markers were also associated with white matter microstructural damage, suggesting that network abnormalities may underlie the link between CeVD and cognitive function. Prof. Chen reports that impairment in verbal memory and executive function was due to WM disruption in commissural fibers, whereas impairments in attention, visual memory, and language were mediated by disruption in projection fibers. This interview took place at the European Stroke Organisation Conference (ESOC), 2021.