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INTRODUCTION,-we tested the hypothesis that brain arterial dilatation increases the risk of Alzheimer dementia (AD).METHODS,-we studied dementia-free participants in the Washington Heights-Inwood Columbia Aging Project (WHICAP) who had a brain MRI and post-MRI dementia adjudication. We measured the axial T2-proton density diameters of the intracranial carotids and basilar diameters and used Cox models to obtain AD hazard ratios and 95% intervals.RESULTS,-Out of 953 participants (mean age 77 ± 7, women 64%, 71% non-white) followed on average for 3 ± 3 years, 76 (8%) developed AD. In a model adjusted for demographics, vascular risks, APOE-ε4, and white matter hyperintensities, larger carotid diameters increased the risk of AD, defined categorically as ≥ 90th percentile (HR 4.34, or continuously (HR 1.44 per SD, 1.07-1.94). DISCUSSION,-understanding the pathophysiology of the association between AD and brain arterial dilatation may reveal new clues to the vascular contributions to AD.

FIRDA is more commonly encountered in the neurocritical care setting as compared with outpatient EEG clinics. Our findings in stroke patients indicate that involved vascular territories may be related to the generation of FIRDA.

Background and Purpose:In patients with dolichoectasia, it is uncertain how dilatation and/or elongation relate to each other. We aimed to examine the correlation between arterial diameter and length within arteries and across the circle of Willis (COW). Methods:We included stroke-free participants in the Northern Manhattan Study who underwent magnetic resonance angiography. Intracranial artery diameters and lengths were obtained with semiautomated commercial software and were adjusted for head size.We first investigated the correlation between diameters and length using Pearson's correlation coefficient. We then built generalized linear models adjusted for demographics and risk factors.Results: Among 1210 participants included in the analysis (mean age 71 ± 9 years, 59% women, 65% Hispanic), a larger basilar artery (BA) diameter correlated with greater BA length (r = .3), and left and right middle cerebral artery (MCA) diameters correlated with one another (r = .4). Across the COW, BA diameter correlated with MCA diameters (r = .3 for both). In adjusted analyses, MCA diameters were associated with larger posterior circulation diameters (β = 0.07), MCA and BA lengths (β = 0.003 and β = 0.002, respectively), presence of fetal posterior cerebral artery (PCA), (β = 0.11), and a complete COW (β = -0.02). Similarly, BA length was associated with a fetal PCA (β = 1.1), and BA diameter was associated with anterior circulation diameters (β = 0.15) and presence of fetal PCA (β = -0.4).Conclusions: COW configuration should be considered when using arterial diameter cutoffs to define dolichoectasia. Further studies are needed to discern whether arterial diameter or length best identify individuals at risk of vascular events attributable to dolichoectasia.

Background: To investigate a comprehensive array of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based biomarkers of cerebrovascular disease (CVD) in a cohort of people living with HIV (PLWH) and relate these imaging biomarkers to cognition.