Cerebral Microbleeds in Advanced Dementia: Clinical and Pathological Correlates

We conducted a longitudinal study to explore the clinical and pathological correlates of cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) in institutionalized patients with dementia. Clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data were extracted from 182 nursing home patients (mean age [standard deviation]: 81.3 [6.9], 78.0% female, and 83.4% moderate to severe dementia), which were divided according to the CMBs number and location. One-year follow-up data were obtained from 153 patients, and postmortem pathological diagnosis was available in 40 patients. Cerebral microbleeds were observed in 42.9% of patients and were associated with MRI ischemic lesions (P < .0005). In the adjusted analysis, lobar CMB predicted worsening of parkinsonism (standardized β: 0.43) and gait (standardized β: 0.24). A pathological diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease was less frequent in the brains of patients with lobar and deep CMB (33.3% vs 85.3%; P < .05). Cerebral microbleeds were linked to cerebrovascular disease and predicted motor deterioration in institutionalized people with advanced dementia