Are Cerebral White Matter Lesions Related to the Presence of Bilateral Internal Carotid Artery Stenosis or to the Length of Stenosis Among Patients With Ischemic Cerebrovascular Events?

We examined the relation between the presence of bilateral ICAS as well as the degree and length of stenosis and ipsi-, contralateral as well as mean white matter lesion load (MWMLL). Methods: In a retrospective cohort, patients with ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) as well as ipsi- and/or contralateral ICAS were identified. The length and degree of ICAS, as well as plaque morphology (hypoechoic, mixed or echogenic), were assessed on ultrasound scans and if available, the length was also measured in the magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and/or digital subtraction angiography (DSA). The WMLs were assessed in 4 sites separately, periventricular and deep WMLs on each side, using the Fazekas scale and the MWMLL was calculated as the mean of these four values. Results: One-hundred-thirty-six patients with 177 ICAS were identified. A strong positive correlation between age and MWMLL was observed (Spearman correlation coefficient, ρ=0.41, p
Source: Frontiers in Neurology - Category: Neurology Source Type: research