Magnetic resonance imaging of vascular diseases of the white matter

Magnetic resonance imaging plays an important role in the diagnosis and management of cerebrovascular diseases. In addition to stroke, it can also demonstrate changes apparent in the white matter such as leukoaraiosis. These as well as other changes occurring with increasing age can be visualized. Among others, there is an increase in the number and size of perivascular spaces. Although many of these alterations may be clinically silent, with increasing load they may become symptomatic. Other vascular pathological findings such as cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy and the posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome can also provoke changes in the cerebral white matter that are visible on magnetic resonance imaging and are discussed.