title: Association between white matter hyperintensities and executive decline in mild cognitive impairment is network dependent.
abstract: White matter hyperintensities (WMH) in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) have been associated with impaired executive functioning, although contradictory findings have been reported. The aim of this study was to examine whether WMH location influenced the relation between WMH and executive functioning in MCI participants (55-90 years) in the European multicenter memory-clinic-based DESCRIPA study, who underwent MRI scanning at baseline (N = 337). Linear mixed model analysis was performed to test the association between WMH damage in three networks (frontal-parietal, frontal-subcortical and frontal-parietal-subcortical network) and change in executive functioning over a 3-year period. WMH in the frontal-parietal and in the frontal-parietal-subcortical network were associated with decline in executive functioning. However, the frontal-subcortical network was not associated with change in executive functioning. Our results suggest that parietal WMH are a significant contributor to executive decline in MCI and that investigation of WMH in the cerebral networks supporting cognitive functions provide a new way to differentiate stable from cognitive declining MCI individuals.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Alzheimer Centre, Limburg, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands. h.jacobs@np.unimaas.nl
authors.forename: Heidi I L
authors.initials: HI
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.forename: Pieter Jelle
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Visser
authors.forename: Martin P J
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Van Boxtel
authors.forename: Giovanni B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Frisoni
authors.forename: Magda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tsolaki
authors.forename: Panagiota
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Papapostolou
authors.forename: Flavio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Nobili
authors.forename: Lars-Olof
authors.initials: LO
authors.lastname: Wahlund
authors.forename: Lennart
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Minthon
authors.forename: Lutz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Frölich
authors.forename: Harald
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hampel
authors.forename: Hilkka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Soininen
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: van de Pol
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Scheltens
authors.forename: Frans E S
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Jelle
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jolles
authors.forename: Frans R J
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Verhey
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000473:pathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D056344:Executive Function; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013997:Time Factors