Rinsho Shinkeigaku (Clinical Neurology)

Review

Trends and challenges in clinical research on cerebral small vessel disease, with a particular emphasis on type-1 small vessel disease

Yusuke Yakushiji, M.D., Ph.D.1)

1) Department of Neurology, Kansai Medical University

Cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) is defined as difficulty maintaining efficient microcirculation, metabolism, and neural networks caused by degeneration of small vessels of the brain, as well as cognitive or physical dysfunction caused by this difficulty. The most common SVD (i.e., type 1 SVD), which is driven by hypertensive arteriopathy, appears to be more prevalent in people with East Asian ethnicity than in Whites. Recent attention has been paid to a SVD scoring system using major MRI markers of SVD in an attempt to comprehensively semi-quantify the SVD burden in the brain. This concept raised a new question: "Is there a practical threshold for the comprehensive SVD score?" The development of computational methods to assess SVD imaging markers could answer this question, and may help identify the optimal intervention for patients with type 1 SVD to prevent stroke and dementia.
Full Text of this Article in Japanese PDF (2157K)

(CLINICA NEUROL, 60: 743－751, 2020)
key words: cerebral small vessel disease, cerebral microbleeds, total small vessel disease score, cerebrovascular diseases, dementia

(Received: 29-May-20)