Regional cerebral blood flow analysis by 133Xe intraarterial injection method

Nine cases of cerebral infarction (cerebrovascular dementia 4 cases, hemiparesis 4, aphasia 1) were investigated by intraarterial 133Xe injection. Eight of the cases were male and one was female. Ages ranged from 38 to 72, with a mean age of 57.6 years. Two criteria were necessary for a diagnosis of cerebrovascular dementia: 1. the presence of cerebrovascular disease and 2. a score of less than 20 on Hasegawa's dementia scale. Cases of cerebrovascular dementia tended to have a lower mean cerebral blood flow (CBF) value on the white matter by two-compartmental analysis. Two of the five brain areas showed statistically significant differences. These results support the modern theory that cerebrovascular dementia appears as a result of a disturbance of the white matter. Cases of cerebrovascular dementia showed a lower mean CBF value with a coefficient of variance of regional distribution by height over area method. This showed that CBF values in cerebrovascular dementia were generally low and the range of values were narrow. In a comparison of regional CBF and cerebral angiographical findings, cases of cerebrovascular dementia tended to have a lower mean CBF value in proportion to the severity of angiographical findings. In addition, regional CBF showed a tendency to agree closely with angiographical findings. (author)