(NaturalPath) According to a study out of the Radiological Society of North America and published in the journal Radiology, a brain MRI could help improve the diagnosis of people with a common type of cognitive disorder. Vascular cognitive disorder is caused by disease of the vessels supplying blood to the brain. Strokes and transient ischemic attacks, or ministrokes, are risk factors. The resulting loss of healthy brain tissue adversely affects concentration and decision-making and leads to problems with planning and organizing. Unfortunately, the prevalence of vascular cognitive disorder is increasing in the elderly, and it can be challenging to diagnose and differentiate from other forms of dementia like Alzheimer’s disease.
“If vascular cognitive disorder follows a major stroke, the cognitive impairment typically develops suddenly, and can thus be well recognized,” said one researcher. “In the majority of cases such a clear association is lacking, explaining why the detection of vascular cognitive disorder remains challenging.”
Having an MRI can help potentially soon due to signal-carrying white matter, but there isn’t a biomarker right now. However, the MRI can help by providing two measures of microscopic brain damage: mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy.
Another researcher said, “Using standard clinical brain MRI, we found that microscopic damage of main white matter tracts allowed us to distinguish patients with symptomatic carotid artery disease and cognitive impairment from those who were cognitively intact. Our findings mean that a simple MRI test might improve the diagnostic work-up of people with suspected vascular cognitive disorder, and holds further promise to track progression of the disorder.”
This is promising for those suffering with the common cognitive disorder.
Razi Berry, Founder and Publisher of Naturopathic Doctor News & Review (ndnr.com) and NaturalPath (thenatpath.com), has spent the last decade as a natural medicine advocate and marketing whiz. She has galvanized and supported the naturopathic community, bringing a higher quality of healthcare to millions of North Americans through her publications. A self-proclaimed health-food junkie and mother of two; she loves all things nature, is obsessed with organic gardening, growing fruit trees (not easy in Phoenix), laughing until she snorts, and homeschooling. She is a little bit crunchy and yes, that is her real name.
