Loss of callosal fibre integrity in healthy elderly with age-related white matter changes.

Age-related white matter changes (ARWMC) appear to correspond to a continuum from normal functioning to clinically overt neurological syndromes. Disturbance of the structural integrity of cerebral fibre tracts-the so-called cerebral network-by ARWMC might be one explanation for this development. From 3 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data of 34 healthy elderly subjects (60-82 years) we calculated the lesion volume of ARWMC and the area of the corpus callosum (CC).