on December 8, 2008
Published online before print December 8, 2008, doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.108.533174
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Submitted on July 30, 2008
From the Department of Neurosurgery (G.J.Z., H.H.), the Department of Neurology (G.J.Z., A.L.F., J.-M.L.), and the Hope Center for Neurological Disorders (G.J.Z., J.-M.L.), Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Mo. * To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: leejm{at}wustl.edu.
Abstract—Cellular elements of the neurovascular unit are essential for the physiological functioning of brain vessels. If any of these vascular elements are disturbed the consequences can be dire. Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), a disorder caused by the accumulation of amyloid in cerebral vessels, provides a case study of progressive neurovascular unit dysfunction leading to failure of vascular reactivity, smooth muscle cell loss, and eventual frank breakdown of vessel integrity resulting in recurrent and sometimes fatal intracerebral hemorrhage.
Accepted on July 30, 2008
Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy. Progressive Disruption of the Neurovascular Unit
Gregory J. Zipfel MD;
Key words: amyloid angiography • neurovascular unit