Physical Activity Self-Report Is Not Reliable Among Subjects with Mild Vascular Cognitive Impairment: The AFIVASC Study.

BACKGROUND: The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week. Adherence to these recommendations is difficult to assess. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to evaluate the validity of self-reported physical activity in mild vascular cognitive impairment (mVCI) and whether physical activity was associated with cognitive status, by using baseline data from a randomized controlled trial. METHODS: A hundred and four subjects with mVCI were included (mean age 72 years; 51% women). Subjects underwent neurological, physical, and comprehensive neuropsychological assessments. Adherence to WHO physical activity recommendations was evaluated using both self-reported information and objective measures (accelerometry). RESULTS: There was poor agreement (kappa = 0.106) between self-report of following WHO recommendations and actually fulfilling them according to accelerometry. Only 16.6% of participants reported following WHO recommendations and displayed compatible values according to the accelerometer. Participants whose accelerometry values confirmed adherence to WHO recommendations had better performance in a global measure of cognition, attention, and mental speed processing. In multiple regression analyses, education and accelerometry values in accordance with WHO recommendations were independently associated with the global measure of cognition, attention, and processing speed, controlling for sex, age, and depressive symptoms. Accelerometry results were not associated with memory and executive functions. CONCLUSION: In this sample of mVCI subjects, self-reported physical activity displayed poor agreement with accelerometry values, suggesting that objective measures of physical activity are preferable. Physical activity (performed, at least, according to WHO recommendations) was associated with better cognitive performance overall.

Impact of physical activity in vascular cognitive impairment (AFIVASC): study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Cognitive impairment and cerebrovascular pathology are both frequent with ageing. Cognitive impairment due to vascular pathology of the brain, termed vascular cognitive impairment (VCI), is one of the most frequent causes of cognitive impairment in elderly subjects. Thus far, VCI has no specific pharmacological treatment. Recent observational studies have suggested a protective effect of physical activity in cognition, but adequate randomised controlled trials (RCT) are lacking. METHODS: AFIVASC is a multi-centre randomised controlled trial, with a 6-month intervention treatment and an additional follow-up of 6 months, that aims to estimate the impact of 6 months of moderate intensity physical activity on cognition (the primary outcome) at 6 and 12 months in subjects with VCI. Participants are community dwellers with criteria for VCI without dementia or who have had previous stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA). Patients may be self-referred or referred from a medical appointment. After confirming the inclusion criteria, a run-in period of 1 month is conducted to access adherence; only after that are subjects randomly assigned (using a computerised program blinded to clinical details) to two groups (intervention group and best practice usual care group). The intervention consists of three physical activity sessions of 60 min each (two supervised and one unsupervised) per week. The primary outcome is measured by the presence or absence of decline in cognitive status. Secondary outcomes include changes in neuro-cognitive measures, quality of life, and functional and motor status. Primary and secondary outcomes are evaluated at 6 and 12 months by investigators blinded to both intervention and randomisation. A required sample size of 280 subjects was estimated. Statistical analyses will include regression analysis with repeated measures. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee for Health of Centro Hospitalar de Lisboa Norte (ref. no. 1063/13) and by the Ethics Committee for Health of Centro Hospitalar do Porto CHP (ref. no. 2016.055(049-DEFI/048-CES)). DISCUSSION: We aim to show whether or not moderate physical activity has a beneficial impact on cognition, quality of life, motor, and functional status in people with vascular cognitive impairment, and to generate new insights on the applicability of implementing physical activity in this specific population. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03578614 July 6, 2018.

Usefulness of EEG for the differential diagnosis of possible transient ischemic attack.

OBJECTIVE: EEG value in possible transient ischemic attacks (TIA) is unknown. We aim to quantify focal slow wave activity (FSWA) and epileptiform activity (EA) frequency in possible TIA, and to analyse its contribution to the final diagnosis of seizures and/or definitive TIA. METHODS: Prospective longitudinal study of possible TIA patients evaluated at a tertiary centre during 36 months and with 1-3 months follow-up. EEG was performed as soon as possible (early EEG) and one month later (late EEG). A stroke neurologist established final diagnosis after reassessing all clinical and diagnostic tests. RESULTS: 80 patients underwent an early EEG (45.8 h after possible TIA): 52 had FSWA and 6 of them also EA. Early FSWA was associated with epileptic seizure or definitive TIA final diagnosis (p = .041). Patients with these diagnoses had more frequently early FSWA (19/23; 82.6%) than EA (6/23; 26.1%). 6/13 (46.2%) patients with epileptic seizure final diagnosis had EA.In the late EEG, 43 (58.1%) patients demonstrated persistent FSWA and 3 of them also EA. Persistent FSWA in the late EEG was more frequent in seizures than in TIA patients (91.7% vs. 45.5%). FSWA disappearance was associated with acute vascular lesion on neuroimage. CONCLUSIONS: FSWA was the commonest EEG abnormality found in the early EEG of patients with possible TIA, but did not distinguish between TIA and seizure patients. In patients with seizures, FSWA was more common than EA and its presence in the late EEG was more likely in patients with epileptic seizures than with TIA. SIGNIFICANCE: The majority of possible TIA patients with the final diagnosis of epileptic seizures do not have EA in the early or late EEG.

Cerebral venous thrombosis.

Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) has an incidence of 1.32/100,000/years in high-income countries, and higher in middle- and low-income countries. CVT is more frequent in infants and children young adults and females, especially during pregnancy/puerperium. CVT are now being diagnosed with increasing frequency because of the increased awareness and higher use of magnetic resonance imaging (MR) for investigating patients with acute and subacute headaches and new onset seizures. CVT rarely present as a stroke syndrome. Their most frequent presentations are isolated headache, intracranial hypertension syndrome, seizures, a lobar syndrome and encephalopathy. The confirmation of the diagnosis of CVT relies on the demonstration of thrombi in the cerebral veins and/or sinuses by MR/MR venography or veno CT. The more frequent risk factors/associated conditions for CVT are genetic prothrombotic conditions, antiphospholipid syndrome and other acquired prothrombotic diseases, including cancer, oral contraceptives, puerperium and pregnancy, infections and trauma. The prognosis of CVT is in general favorable, as acute death rate is below 5% and only 15% of the patients remain dependent or die. Treatment in the acute phase includes management of the associated condition, anticoagulation with either low molecular weight or unfractionated heparin, treatment of intracranial hypertension, prevention of recurrent seizures and headache relief. In patients in severe condition on admission or who deteriorate despite anticoagulation, local thrombolysis or thrombectomy is an option. Decompressive surgery is lifesaving in patients with large venous infarcts or hemorrhage with impending herniation. After the acute phase, patients should anticoagulated for a variable period of time, depending on their inherent thrombotic risk. CVT patients may experience recurrent seizures. Prophylaxis with anti-epileptic drugs is recommended after the first seizure, in those with hemispheric lesions. There are several ongoing multicenter registries and trials, which will improve evidence-based and patient-centered management of CVT in the near future.

Subarachnoid Haemorrhage and Sports.

BACKGROUND: Some cases of subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) have been associated with vigorous physical activity, including sports. Our research aimed to describe the association between SAH and sports and to identify the types of sports that were more frequently found as precipitating factors in a tertiary single-centre SAH register. METHODS: We retrieved information from a prospectively collected SAH registry and reviewed discharge notes of acute SAH patients admitted to the Stroke Unit of Hospital de Santa Maria, Lisbon, between 1995 and 2014. RESULTS: Out of 738 patients included in the analysis, 424 (57.5%) cases of SAH were preceded by physical activity. Nine cases (1.2%) were associated with sports, namely running (2 cases), aerobics (2 cases), cycling, body balance, dance, surf and windsurf. Patients with SAH while practicing sports were younger than controls (average age 43.1 vs. 57.0 years; p = 0.007). In 1 patient, there was a report of trauma to the neck. Patients in the sports group only had Hunt and Hess scale grades 1 (11.1%) or 2 (88.9%) at admission, while patients in the control group had a wider distribution in severity. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that SAH precipitated by sports is not very frequent and is uncommonly related to trauma. Patients who suffered SAH associated with sports were younger and apparently had a milder clinical presentation.

Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy Associated with Inflammation: Report of 3 Cases and Systematic Review.

INTRODUCTION: Cerebral amyloid angiopathy associated with inflammatory process (CAA-I) is a rare potentially treatable encephalopathy, characterized by an inflammatory response to vascular deposits of ß-amyloid. We aimed to describe 3 clinical cases and perform a systematic review of all neuropathologically proved CAA-I case reports to describe its clinical and pathologic features and outcome under different treatments. METHODS: We searched PubMed and Cochrane Library and screened references of included studies and review articles for additional citations. Outcome was classified at the last available follow-up by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS). RESULTS: A total of 67 publications, reporting on 155 patients, were included. Mean age was 66.9 years, and 53.5% were men. The most common clinical presentation was cognitive dysfunction (48.0%) followed by headaches (38.7%), seizures (36.7%), and pyramidal signs (20.0%). Perivascular and vasculitic inflammation with granuloma was the most common pathologic pattern (27.5%). Eighty-six percent were treated with corticosteroids and 33.9% with cyclophosphamide. Forty-two percent regained independence (mRS score 0-2), whereas 20.5% were left with a severe handicap (mRS score 3-5) and 37.5% died. There were no statistically significant differences in outcome between patients treated with therapy with corticosteroids alone comparing with those treated with combination corticosteroids with cytostatic agents. CONCLUSIONS: The most common clinical manifestation of CAA-I was cognitive dysfunction. The functional outcome was unfavorable in the majority of the patients, with death or severe disability in almost two third of the cases, despite treatment. No differences in outcome could be detected between patients treated with corticosteroids versus patients treated with cytostatics, combined with corticosteroids.

Rapidly progressive cognitive impairment, ataxia, and myoclonus: an unusual presentation of a dural arteriovenous fistula.

Dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs) have a wide range of clinical presentations, including dementia associated with white matter changes (WMCs). We report a case of DAVF presenting as a rapid progressive dementia and myoclonus without WMCs. A 64-year-old hypertensive and diabetic man was admitted because of a 3-month history of progressive cognitive decline, extrapyramidal and cerebellar signs, and myoclonus. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of the brain showed dilated cerebellar veins and T2WI hypersignal in the basal ganglia without WMCs. After admission, he suffered sequential bilateral deep intracerebral hemorrhages. A repeated angioMRI disclosed thrombosis of the distal sagittal and the proximal lateral sinuses. Angiography revealed a torcullar region DAVF. Embolization of the dural fistula was performed. On follow-up, the patients' cognitive deficits improved and myoclonus disappeared. The clinical picture may be explained by venous hypertension in the deep venous system, producing bilateral basal ganglia/thalamic dysfunction and in the posterior fossa. This case shows that DAVFs can produce subcortical dementia without involvement of the deep white matter.

Rapidly progressive dementia due to leukocytoclastic vasculitis of the central nervous system.

A 70-year-old male was admitted with a 2-week progressive course of severe cognitive impairment, scoring three on the Mini Mental State Examination. MRI of the brain showed confluent hyperintense areas in T2/FLAIR in the periventricular and subcortical white matter, extending to right parietal cortex and basal ganglia. Intra-arterial angiography was unremarkable. A targeted stereotactic brain biopsy disclosed a leukocytoclastic vasculitis. The patient improved on steroids. Leukocytoclastic vasculitis adds to the spectrum of histopathologic subtypes of primary angiitis of the central nervous system.

Cognitive function correlates with frontal white matter apparent diffusion coefficients in patients with leukoaraiosis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) displays a high sensitivity to white matter changes, even in areas where no lesions are visible. Correlation with vascular risk factors and cognitive dysfunction seems to be feasible using this technique. We aimed to test relations between age, blood pressure and cognitive function,with lesion load and average Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) values in lesioned (LWM) and in normal appearing white matter (NAWM), in patients with age related white matter lesions (ARWML). METHODS: Subjects were 29 patients (mean age 72.6 +/- 5.2 years) with different severity of ARWML on MRI and no (or mild) disability assessed by the Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale. Imaging lesion load was quantified in bilateral frontal, temporal, parieto-occipital, basal ganglia and infratentorial regions, using a simple visual rating scale; ADC was measured bilaterally in Regions of Interest in parieto-occipital and frontal NAWM, and in frontal periventricular LWM. Neuropsychological examination consisted of Raven Colored Progressive Matrices, Rey's Complex Figure, Digit Canceling. Symbol digit Substitution, Inverse Digit Repetition and Verbal Fluency tests. RESULTS: Visual scales scores and ADC were significantly higher in frontal and parieto-occipital regions. Both were significantly correlated to age and blood pressure, in frontal (visual scale scores and ADC) and parieto-occipital regions (ADC). Attention skills were negatively correlated to ADC in LWM and NAWM in frontal regions and with frontal region visual scale scores. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that severity of white matter ischemic changes is correlated with worse cognitive function, as well as advanced age and higher blood pressure.A higher vulnerability of frontal white matter to vascular disease seems to play an important role in executive dysfunction, mainly determined by impairment of attentional skills.DWI results suggest this could be true even for NAWM.