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The relationship between microvasculature in white matter hyperintensities and cognitive function

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Abstract

White matter hyperintensities (WMHs) are associated with cognitive decline, but less is known about pathophysiology of cognitive decline in patients with WMHs. We investigated microvasculature and microstructure in WMHs using intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) and their associations with cognitive function. Thirty-two subjects with WMHs were enrolled in our study. Fast diffusion coefficient (D*), perfusion fraction (f) and slow diffusion coefficient (D) from IVIM model were compared between regions of WMHs (periventricular WMHs, PWMHs and deep WMHs, DWMHs) and surrounding normal white matter. Multivariate linear model was used to determine the independent factors associated with cognitive function assessed by the Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the standardized coefficient (β) of factors was estimated. D* was significantly lower (4.95 × 10−3 mm2/s versus 8.36 × 10−3 mm2/s in PWMHs and 5.04 × 10−3 mm2/s versus 8.67 × 10−3 mm2/s in DWMHs, both P < 0.001), and f (14.64 % versus 12.01 % in PWMHs and 14.26 % versus 11.31 % in DWMHs, both P < 0.001) and D (1.02 × 10−3 mm2/s versus 0.73 × 10−3 mm2/s in PWMHs and 0.86 × 10−3 mm2/s versus 0.70 × 10−3 mm2/s in DWMHs, both P < 0.001) were significantly higher in WMHs. Only f in PWMHs was independently associated with MMSE (β = 0.443, P = 0.016). The decreased D* and increased D in WMHs were similar to previous findings. The increased f in PWMHs relating with better cognition provides the pathophysiological basis in understanding cognitive decline in patients with WMHs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, The 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

    Jianzhong Sun, Xinfeng Yu, Yerfan Jiaerken, Ruirui Song, Peiyu Huang, Chao Wang & Minming Zhang

  2. Department of Biomedical Engineering and Instrument Science, Key Laboratory for Biomedical Engineering of Education Ministry of China, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China

    Lixia Yuan

  3. Department of Neurology, The 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

    Yingying Mao & Yang Guo

  4. Department of Psychiatry, The 2nd Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China

    Hualiang Yu

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  1. Jianzhong Sun
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  11. Minming Zhang
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Correspondence to Minming Zhang.

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Funding

This study was funded by Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number: LZ14H180001), National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant number: 81271530) and Health and Family Planning Commission of Zhejiang Province (grant number: 2016154942).

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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“All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.”

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Sun, J., Yu, X., Jiaerken, Y. et al. The relationship between microvasculature in white matter hyperintensities and cognitive function. Brain Imaging and Behavior 11, 503–511 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-016-9531-8

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