Disconnection due to white matter hyperintensities is associated with lower cognitive scores

Carolyn D. Langen, Lotte G.M. Cremers, Marius de Groot, Tonya White, M. Arfan Ikram, Wiro J. Niessen, Meike W. Vernooij*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

27 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Previous studies have linked global burden of age-related white matter hyperintensities (WMHs) to cognitive impairment. We aimed to determine how WMHs in individual white matter connections relate to measures of cognitive function relative to measures of connectivity which do not take WMHs into account. Brain connectivity and WMH-related disconnectivity were derived from 3714 participants of the population-based Rotterdam Study. Connectivity was represented by the structural connectome, which was defined using diffusion tensor data, whereas the disconnectome represented disconnectivity due to WMH. The relationship between (dis)connectivity and cognitive measures was estimated using linear regression. We found that lower disconnectivity and higher connectivity corresponded to better cognitive function. There were many more significant associations with cognitive function in the disconnectome than in the connectome. Most connectome associations attenuated when disconnection was included in the model. WMH-related disconnectivity was especially related to worse executive functioning. Better cognitive speed corresponded to higher connectivity in specific connections independent of WMH presence. We conclude that WMH-related disconnectivity explains more variation in cognitive function than does connectivity. Efficient wiring in specific connections is important to information processing speed independent of WMH presence.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)745-756
JournalNeuroImage
Volume183
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • Aging
  • Brain
  • Cognition
  • Connectome
  • Disconnectome
  • White matter hyperintensities

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Disconnection due to white matter hyperintensities is associated with lower cognitive scores'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this