Multi-infarct Dementia

Synonyms

Cerebrovascular dementia; Dementia in stroke; Subcortical ischemic vascular dementia (SIVD); Vascular cognitive impairment; Vascular dementia

Definition

Multi-infarct dementia is a vascular dementia syndrome characterized by cognitive decline resulting from the combined effects of multiple ischemic lesions in the brain. Ischemic lesions include large and small cortical and subcortical infarcts, lacunar infarcts, and diffuse white matter ischemic changes. This particular subtype of vascular dementia, in which multiple infarcts (i.e., dead tissue areas) are present, is contrasted with cognitive impairment caused by other forms of cerebrovascular change (i.e., small vessel dementia, hemorrhagic cerebrovascular dementia, strategic infarct dementia, etc.).

Historical Background

The term multi-infarct dementia, coined by Hachinski in 1974, was initially used to describe dementia due to vascular pathology. In 1985, Loeb introduced the term vascular dementia to refer to a global class...