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Category: Project

Description: Cerebral small vessel disease (cSVD) is a major brain pathology contributing to cognitive decline and dementia. Vascular risk factors have been associated with imaging markers of cSVD such as white matter lesions, yet longitudinal studies have not comprehensively assessed these effects for abdominal obesity or reported sex/gender-specific effects. In this pre-registered analysis of a longitudinal population-based neuroimaging cohort, we aim to fill this gap by providing a comprehensive analysis of the association of blood pressure on the progression of white matter lesions in sex/gender-stratified analyses. We will also investigate the link of white matter lesion progression and cognitive performance. Further, we will explore the contribution of baseline abdominal obesity to white matter lesion progression and explore whether the vascular risk factors are associated with specific locations of white matter lesions.