Neuropsychological correlates of the proportional impact of white matter hyperintensities on mild to moderate dementia: The MRI 300 study

Bon D. Ku, Duk L. Na, So Young Moon, Seong Yoon Kim, Sang Won Seo, Hae Kwan Cheong, Kyung Won Park, Kee Hyung Park, Jun Young Lee, Kyung Ryeol Cha, Yong S. Shim, Young Chul Youn, Chan Seung Chung, Jung Eun Kim, Hee Young Kang, Sang Yun Kim, Seong Hye Choi, Seol Heui Han

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) increase cognitive impairment in patients with dementia. Objective: We investigated the impact of WMH on the neuropsychological profiles in patients with mild to moderate dementia. Methods: We consecutively recruited newly diagnosed patients with mild to moderate dementia across South Korea for 1 year. The participants completed neuropsychological tests, magnetic resonance imaging, and structured neurological evaluations. The patients were divided into 3 categories, i.e. minimal, moderate, and severe WMH groups, according to the proportional degree of WMH. Results: 289 patients were recruited; 140 (48.3%) for the minimal WMH group, 99 (34.2%) for the moderate group, and 50 (17.5%) for the severe group. Both advanced age and low general cognitive level were significant contributors to WMH in patients with dementia. After adjusting for age, the neuropsychological correlates of the proportional impact of WMH were frontal executive, language, and attention profiles. However, the only significant neuropsychological correlate was the recognition memory profile after adjusting for both age and general cognitive level simultaneously. Conclusion: The results suggest that the most significant neuropsychological profile impacting the burden of WMH in patients with mild to moderate dementia was the recognition memory profile, regardless of age and general cognitive function.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)397-405
Number of pages9
JournalDementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders
Volume31
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2011

Keywords

  • Alzheimer's disease
  • Neuropsychology of dementia
  • Subcortical vascular dementia
  • White matter hyperintensities

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