[Diffusion tensor imaging of elderly leukoaraiosis and its correlation with cognitive function].

Objective: To apply diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) for investigating the correlation between leukoaraiosis (LA) lesion's fraction anisotropy (FA) as well as average diffusion coefficient (DCavg) and LA severity, so as to explore DTI changes in microstructure of white marrow with normal ordinary MRI and its correlation with cognitive function.

Methods: Sixty LA patients and 30 healthy elderly people accepted DTI examination to detect the value of DCavg and FA of LA lesion and normal white marrow. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was used for assessing cognitive function.