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White matter is the tissue through which messages pass between different areas of grey matter within the central nervous system. The white matter is white because of the fatty substance (myelin) that surrounds the nerve fibers (axons). This myelin is found in almost all long nerve fibers, and acts as an electrical insulation.
The white matter is substantially affected, with noticeable atrophy (tissue loss), in addition to calcification of the arteries. [2] [6] [17] Microinfarcts may also be present in the gray matter (cerebral cortex), sometimes in large numbers. [2]
Age-related decrease in gray matter volume was the largest contribution to changes in brain volume. Moreover, neuronal density appears to decrease, white matter microstructure gets altered and energy metabolism in the cerebellum gets altered. [16] General cortical atrophy occurs in aging and e.g. the caudate nucleus volume appears to decrease.
The first symptoms are often mistakenly attributed to aging or stress. [34] Detailed neuropsychological testing can reveal mild cognitive difficulties up to eight years before a person fulfills the clinical criteria for diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease. [35] These early symptoms can affect the most complex activities of daily living. [36]
Researchers analyzing the white matter of superagers over a 5-year period found that despite comparable overall white matter health with typical older adults, superagers exhibited superior ...
Signs and symptoms are classified into three groups based on the affected functions of the frontal and temporal lobes: [8] These are behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia, semantic dementia, and progressive nonfluent aphasia. An overlap between symptoms can occur as the disease progresses and spreads through the brain regions. [14]