084 – Interview: Understanding White Matter Changes in the Aging Brain

In This Episode:

Dr. K talks with neurologist Fanny Elahi, MD PhD, about cerebral small vessel disease and other issues related to white matter changes in the brain. Dr. Elahi sees patients and conducts research at UCSF’s Memory and Aging Center, and is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at UCSF. They discuss:

• What is the white matter in the brain, and why it often changes or is damaged with aging
• The relationship between white matter changes and cerebral small vessel disease
• How white matter changes can be thought of as a form of “scarring” in brain
• Why these brain changes can affect memory, thinking, and/or falls
• What we know about the prevention and treatment of these changes
• How white matter changes relate to vascular dementia, Alzheimer’s and other causes of dementia
• How the UCSF Memory and Aging Center evaluates white matter changes
• What is vascular parkinsonism
• What to consider for younger people with white matter changes on MRI
• Her recommendations on maintaining the brain and its blood vessels
• Ongoing research projects at UCSF and elsewhere that listeners may be able to participate in

Related episodes:

078 – Interview: The Biology of Aging & Longevity

072 – Cognitive Aging: How Memory & Thinking Change as One Gets Older

048 – How Cerebral Small Vessel Disease Affects Most Aging Brains

Related Resources:

• Cerebral Small Vessel Disease: What to Know & What to Do
• Research Opportunities at the UCSF Memory & Aging Center
• Developing biomarkers for small vessel brain disease: the Mark VCID consortium