Vascular Dementia - Cerebrovascular Mechanisms and Clinical Management

With an aging population suffering from a high level of cardiac and cerebrovascular disease, it has become increasingly clear that the time may be ripe for a deeper understanding of vascular disease (VaD). In Vascular Dementia: Cerebrovascular Mechanisms and Clinical Management, a panel of multidisciplinary experts summarizes our current understanding of the biological and clinical aspects of the condition. The authors describe the basic mechanisms associated with aging and cerebrovascular disease that may play an important role in the development of VaD, and identify its impact on cognitive status, psychiatric health, and the ability of patients to complete the tasks of daily living. Additional chapters address the pharmacological management of vascular dementia and the use of neuroimaging methods to investigate it, with particular attention devoted to both functional and structural imaging techniques. The complex relationship between VaD and Alzheimer's disease (AD) is fully explored, with chapters on how these processes may interact and how one disease may lower the threshold for clinical expression of the other. The authors also consider the impact of VaD on the perceived quality of life of patients and caregivers, two issues rarely discussed in the scientific community. Comprehensive and thoroughly up-to-date, Vascular Dementia: Cerebrovascular Mechanisms and Clinical Management offers both clinicians and basic scientists a wide ranging account of this rapidly developing field, explores the direction of future VaD studies, and authoritatively describes today's optimal therapeutic approaches.