Plasma Homocysteine and Risk of Coexisting Silent Brain Infarction in Alzheimer’s Disease

Autor: Toshifumi Matsui, Susumu Higuchi, Masahiro Maruyama, Takefumi Yuzuriha, Mari Ootsuki, Katsutoshi Furukawa, Hiroshi Yao, Miyako Nemoto, Takashi Seki, Yo Ichi Yoshida, Hiroyuki Arai, Naoki Tomita, Sachio Matsushita, Haruko Tanji, Koh Iwasaki
Rok vydání: 2005
Předmět:
Zdroj: Neurodegenerative Diseases. 2:299-304
ISSN: 1660-2862
1660-2854
Popis: Background: Cerebrovascular disease is common in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Elevated plasma homocysteine (pHcy) levels are reported to be associated with an increased risk of poor cognition and dementia. Objective: To determine whether high pHcy levels are associated with an increased risk of coexisting silent brain infarctions (SBIs) in AD. Methods: Study population comprising 143 outpatients with clinical diagnosis of probable AD (73.3 ± 7.0 years) were classified into 2 groups according to the presence or absence of SBIs on magnetic resonance imaging. Results: SBIs were noted in 32.9% (47/143) of the AD patients. The pHcy levels in the AD with SBIs (14.0 ± 4.5 µmol/l) were significant ly elevated compared with the AD without SBIs (11.7 ± 4.7 µmol/l, p = 0.007). After adjusting for age and gender, high pHcy (>12.4 µmol/l), but not hypertension, was associated with an increased risk of developing SBIs in AD (OR = 4.61, 95% CI = 1.74–12.2, p = 0.002). However, age at onset, cognitive function, cerebrospinal tau or amyloid β-peptide1–42 levels were not significantly correlated with pHcy levels in AD. Conclusion: SBIs commonly coexist with AD, and may be a unique vascular condition in which homocysteine plays an important role. Homocysteine-lowering therapy rather than antihypertensive medication might be an appropriate strategy to prevent stroke associated with AD.
Databáze: OpenAIRE