Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy Associated with Ischemic Stroke Without Dementia

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), a common disease of the elderly, can have dire consequences, particularly as a cause of intracerebral hemorrhage. CAA is also an important contributor to warfarin-associated intracerebral hemorrhage. Autopsy studies suggest a prevalence of between 5 percent and 9 percent in patients in their seventh decade of life; prevalence rises to between 43 percent and 58 percent in the tenth decade. Although probably fewer than half of these patients have CAA severe enough to cause hemorrhage, CAA can be associated with conditions other than hemorrhage, including Alzheimer's disease (AD), transient neurologic symptoms, dementia with leukoencephalopathy, and vasculitis.

To determine whether CAA is a risk factor for isc…