The ARIC MRI Study
The ARIC MRI Study
To perform a follow-up study of cerebrovascular disease in the Atherosclerosis Risk in
 Communities (ARIC) magnetic resonance imaging subcohort.
BACKGROUND:

 Although the clinical manifestations of cerebrovascular disease (CVD) typically appear
 acutely, the deleterious effects of CVD on brain structure and function likely begin in a
 presymptomatic fashion at a younger age than clinical strokes. In an effort to characterize
 the prevalence, risk factors, and cognitive correlates of subclinical CVD, the
 Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study funded by the National Heart, Lung, and
 Blood Institute performed cerebral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and cognitive assessments
 on a large, bi-racial sample of middle-aged and young-elderly adults. Results from the ARIC
 MRI baseline study revealed a remarkably high prevalence of subclinical CVD including silent
 cerebral infarctions, white matter hyperintensities, and brain atrophy. Moreover, these
 subclinical abnormalities were found to be associated with reduced cognitive functioning and
 with clinical CVD outcomes such as incident stroke. Surprisingly little is known about risk
 factors related to the incidence or progression of subclinical CVD or how progression of
 these markers may relate to clinical outcomes such as stroke or neurocognitive decline.

 DESIGN NARRATIVE:

 This is a follow-up study of the ARIC MRI cohort, with repeated semiquantitative MR imaging
 and cognitive assessments. The study will also take advantage of recent advances in MR
 imaging and obtain volumetric measurements of selected brain regions and expand upon the
 baseline cognitive assessment to further characterize neurocognitive functioning. The
 longitudinal design of the proposed study will fill salient gaps in current understanding of
 subclinical CVD. Moreover, conducting this study within ARIC takes advantage of ARIC's
 baseline MRI data, unique African American population, and extensive vascular risk factor
 data (including new genetic and biochemical factors as well as subclinical markers of both
 large and small vessel disease), making an efficient study to provide new insights into the
 incidence, progression, and outcomes associated with subclinical CVD.
Participated in the baseline ARIC MRI study.