Perilesional white matter gradients reveal microstructural differences in cerebral amyloid angiopathy versus Alzheimer's disease - PubMed
3 hours ago
- #Alzheimer's disease
- #White matter hyperintensities
- #Cerebral amyloid angiopathy
- White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are common in both Alzheimer's disease (AD) and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), but their microstructural differences are not well understood.
- The study analyzed 351 participants, including Aβ-positive AD/MCI, Aβ-negative controls, and probable CAA cases, using multimodal MRI to assess periventricular and deep WMHs.
- CAA showed distinct microstructural differences in periventricular WMHs, including free-water fraction (FWF), fractional anisotropy (FA), and mean diffusivity (MD).
- Spatial gradient parameters of periventricular WMHs effectively distinguished CAA from AD/MCI with AUC values ranging from 0.71 to 0.79.
- Follow-up testing after 1-2 years showed improved diagnostic accuracy (AUCs: FWF = 0.89, MD = 0.79, FA = 0.85).
- The findings suggest that spatial gradient parameters reflect disease-specific microstructural and vascular changes, aiding in differentiating CAA from AD.