on May 14, 2009
Published online before print May 14, 2009, doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.109.548222
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Submitted on January 20, 2009
From INSERM U708 (J.-F.B., C.D., A.A., T.K., C.T.), Paris, France; UPMC Univ Paris06 (J.-F.B., C.D., A.A., T.K., C.T.), Paris, France; Centre d'Imagerie-Neurosciences et Applications aux Pathologies (B.M., P.M.), CI-NAPS, CNRS, CEA, Université de Caen, Université Paris Descartes, GIP Cyceron, France; INSERM U780 (P.D.), Villejuif, France; the Department of Neurology (M.-G.B., C.T.), Hôpital Lariboisière, Paris, France; and the Division of Preventive Medicine (T.K.), Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass. * To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: christophe.tzourio{at}upmc.fr.
Background and Purpose—White matter lesions (WMLs) have been shown to be associated with the risk of stroke in previous studies but little is known about the prediction of other vascular events. We evaluated the risk of stroke and other vascular events according to WML volume in a large population-based sample. We also studied WML volume by type (deep or periventricular) in relation to these events. Methods—The 3-City Study is a population-based prospective cohort of people aged Results—The risk of incident stroke significantly increased with increasing baseline WML volume and was multiplied by 5 for those in the highest quartile of WML volume. Nonstroke vascular events' incidence was not associated with WML volumes, whatever their type. Conclusions—WMLs are an independent predictor of stroke in the elderly. This association is specific because WMLs are not associated with the risk of other vascular events.
Revised on February 6, 2009
Accepted on February 10, 2009
Cerebral White Matter Lesions Are Associated With the Risk of Stroke But Not With Other Vascular Events. The 3-City Dijon Study
Jean-François Buyck MSc;
65 years followed up for, on average, 4.6 years. Among them, 1643 participants free of prevalent vascular events had quantitative measurements of WML volume at baseline using a fully automatic method. The risks of incident major vascular events according to WML volume were evaluated using Cox proportional hazards models.
Key words: MRI • myocardial infarction • stroke • vascular death • white matter