Rheumatic diseases and autoimmune vascular dementia

Publication date: Available online 14 October 2017
Source:Autoimmunity Reviews
Author(s): Fabiola Atzeni, Nicolò Pipitone, Luca Iaccarino, Ignazio Francesco Masala, Ronen Weiss, Alessandra Alciati, Andrea Doria, Joab Chapmanand, Piercarlo Sarzi-Puttini
Vascular dementia (VD) comes second after Alzheimer's disease (AD) as a cause of impaired cognition. VD is not a specific nosological entity, but rather a syndrome encompassing a number of diseases caused by impaired supply of blood to the brain. Systemic autoimmune disorders such as systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis and antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) can be associated with dementia. VD is often related to the presence of traditional cardiovascular risk factors, but it may also be associated with a host of disorders affecting the brain blood vessels, neuronal cells, or both. It is important to entertain in the differential diagnosis of VD, to recognize and to cure them accurately in order to preserve life's quality of our patients.



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