Cerebral Structure and Function in Stroke-free Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

Objectives: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with high risk of dementia and brain atrophy in stroke-free patients, but the mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear. We aimed to examine the brain volume and connectivity of paramount cognitive brain networks in stroke-free patients with AF without dementia.

Materials And Methods: Twenty-six stroke-free patients with AF and 26 age and sex-matched subjects without AF were submitted to a 3-tesla brain structural and functional MRI.

Default Mode Network Disruption in Stroke-Free Patients with Atrial Fibrillation.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a widely accepted risk for causing stroke. However, recent studies show AF as a risk factor for dementia, even without causing stroke. The mechanisms by which dementia develops in stroke-free patients with AF are still poorly understood and the association of AF with abnormal function of brain networks activities, such as the default mode network (DMN), has not been previously studied.