Cerebral Microbleeds and Dementia

In a prior video, Dr. Wilner explored the association between cerebral microbleeds and intracerebral hemorrhage in patients with ischemic stroke and anticoagulation. In this report, Dr. Wilner discusses 5 key facts about cerebral microbleeds and risk of future cognitive impairment.

Five important facts

1. Cerebral microbleeds are well-defined pathological lesions detectable by MRI.

2. Cerebral microbleeds are common in the elderly, up to 30%.

3. Cerebral microbleeds are associated with hypertensive vasculopathy and/or cerebral amyloid angiopathy.

4. In this AGES study, 3 or more cerebral microbleeds were associated with increased incidence of vascular dementia and dementia from any cause.

5. Cerebral microbleeds are markers of microvascular contribution to cognitive impairment.

Dr. Wilner is Associate Professor of Neurology at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and a staff physician at Regional One Health in Memphis, TN. His latest book, Bullets and Brains, is a collection of over 100 essays that focus on the intersection of neurology and society. Twitter: @drwilner.

Further reading:

Ding J, Sigurdsson S, Jonsson PV et al. Space and location of cerebral microbleeds, cognitive decline, and dementia in the community. Neurology 2017;88:2089-2097.