The significance of white matter lucencies on CT scan in relation to cognitive impairment.
As part of a prospective clinicopathological study a cohort of "normal" elderly volunteers (n = 110) has been investigated with CT scans, psychometric testing (Extended Scale for Dementia) and neurological examination. CT scans were evaluated by a neuroradiologist for the presence or absence of white matter lucencies (WML). WML were defined as patchy or diffuse areas of decreased attenuation involving only white matter and with no change in adjacent ventricles or sulci. The 12 subjects with WML had lower scores on the ESD than the 98 subjects without WML (mean ESD with WML 229.5 +/- 14; without WML 236.7 +/- 8.6, t-test p less than .01) and the difference remains significant even after adjusting for the possible confounding effects of age (ANCOVA, P less than .043).
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed