Muristek
Dementia is a leading cause of disability and death with an estimate of more than 50 million people living with the disease worldwide, a number that is projected to triple by 2050. Unlike Alzheimer disease, a degenerative condition without proven cure or treatment, vascular dementia is the second most common etiology and opens up opportunities for dementia prevention through treatment of known risk factors such as hypertension and atrial fibrillation (AF). The latter is a known risk factor for dementia through cerebral embolism and ischemic stroke primarily but also through nonstroke mechanisms. Thus, prevention, detection, and treatment of AF are important strategies not only for reducing the public health impact of stroke in society but also for reducing the incidence of dementia. Given the often intermittent and asymptomatic nature of AF and the resultant challenges in AF detection, the inquiry into AF substrates and biomarkers using cardiac imaging and electrophysiology has taken on even greater importance in the past decade.
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