Classification of white matter lesions and characteristics of small vessel disease markers.

Objectives: Radiological markers for cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) may have different biological underpinnings in their development. We attempted to categorize SVD burden by integrating white matter signal abnormalities (WMSA) features and secondary presence of lacunes, microbleeds, and enlarged perivascular spaces.

Methods: Data were acquired from 610 older adults (aged > 40 years) who underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging exam as part of a health checkup.