ABSTRACT
Vascular dementia (VaD) may be caused by several different cerebrovascular disorders, the most common being stroke and ischemic white matter lesions. Almost all population-based studies, however, use the term to describe the prevalence and incidence of VaD related to small and large strokes. The only population study that examined VaD related to ischemic white matter lesions suggested that this may be the most common cause of all dementias (Skoog et al, 1994). Seventy percent of demented 85-year-olds in that study had ischemic white matter lesions compared to 35% in the non-demented group.
