engleski

Neurosonological evaluation of patients with cognitive impairments

The aging of the population and higher life expectancy has lead to an increase in the incidence of cognitive changes and dementia. It is important to differentiate between cognitive changes associated with normal aging and dementia. Dementia is a syndrome caused by a heterogeneous group of disorders, the most common being Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VaD). While cardiovascular risk factors, such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hypercholsterolemia, atrial fibrillation, and smoking, are particularly relevant in the development of VaD, they may also play a role in AD. The control of these risk factors at an early stage may help to delay the onset and reduce the severity of vasculopathy. Intracranial haemodynamics of the aging brain can sucessfully be assessed by a number of methods, including Transcranial Doppler Sonography (TCD), functional TCD, and TCD detection of cerebral emboli. Extracranial circulation can be assessed by means of color doppler flow imaging (CDFI).

dementia; neurosonology; normal aging

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