WMHs AND HOMOCYSTEINE LEVELS AS CANDIDATE BIOMARKER FOR COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT

The aim of this pilot study was to test the hypotheses that a) WMHs would be a biological marker in South Indian patients who present with either cognitive impairment, dementia or depression and b) presence of WMHs would be related to other blood biochemical markers. A significant positive correlation was present between temporal WMHs and increased homocysteine levels. A significant inverse correlation was obtained between MMSE scores and frontal caps. Association between temporal WMHs and elevated plasma homocysteine levels implies that this can serve as a biological marker for cognitive impairment and possibly for therapy.