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. 2010 Feb;41(2):273-9.
doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.109.566810. Epub 2009 Dec 31.

Intima-media thickness and regional cerebral blood flow in older adults

Jitka Sojkova  1 , Samer S Najjar, Lori L Beason-Held, E Jeffrey Metter, Christos Davatzikos, Michael A Kraut, Alan B Zonderman, Susan M Resnick
Affiliations

Intima-media thickness and regional cerebral blood flow in older adults

Jitka Sojkova et al. Stroke. 2010 Feb.

Abstract

Background and purpose: The relationship between the thickness of the carotid intima (IMT) and brain function remains unclear in those without clinical manifestations of cerebrovascular disease. Understanding the neural correlates of this vascular measure is important in view of emerging evidence linking poorer cognitive performance with increased IMT in individuals without clinical cerebrovascular disease.

Methods: Seventy-three participants in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging (70.9 years; SD, 7.3) were evaluated with carotid artery ultrasound and resting [(15)O]H(2)O positron emission tomography.

Results: After adjusting for age, gender, and gray and white matter volumes in the regions where IMT is related to regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF), we found that higher IMT was associated with lower rCBF in lingual, inferior occipital, and superior temporal regions. Higher IMT was also associated with higher rCBF in medial frontal gyrus, putamen, and hippocampal-uncal regions (P=0.001). Whereas women had lower IMT (P=0.01) and mean arterial pressure (P=0.05) than men, they showed more robust associations between IMT and rCBF. The relationship between IMT and rCBF was only minimally affected by additional adjustment for mean arterial pressure.

Conclusions: IMT is related to patterns of resting rCBF in older adults without clinical manifestations of cerebrovascular disease, suggesting that there are regional differences in CBF that are associated with subclinical vascular disease.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1. Sex Differences in IMT
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2. Neural Correlates of Higher IMT
A. The overall relationship between IMT and rCBF, adjusted for age, sex, and brain volume. Regions with lower(blue) and higher(orange) resting rCBF with greater IMT are overlaid on MRI slices. B. After additional adjustment for MAP, only minimal changes in the spatial extent are seen.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3. Sex Differences in the Neural Correlates of Higher IMT
A. Regions showing lower(blue) and higher(orange) resting rCBF with higher IMT in females and males separately overlaid on MRI slices. B. After additional adjustment for MAP, changes in spatial extent of neural correlates of higher IMT are most pronounced in females.
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