Clinical Manifestations Of Basilar Dolichoectasia And Its Relationship With Leukoencephalopathy

Objective:To investigate differences in clinical manifestations between patients with symptomatic and non-symptomatic basilar dolichoectasia (BD) and to find out the relationship between BD and leukoencephalopathy.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed our patients with CTA or MRA admitted in our hospital from January2012to January2013. We compared the baseline characteristics, risk factors of cerebrovascular events, and kidney function between patients with symptomatic and non-symptomatic basilar dolichoectasia. We also divided the symptoms into vascular events and compressive symptoms. We computed the correlation coefficients between basilar diameter and the degree of leukoencephalopathy. Results:The diameter of basilar artery in symptomatic BD patients was larger, and the level of diastolic blood pressure and uric acid were higher, compared to those without symptoms. The group of vascular symptoms had greater basilar artery diameter, higher baseline systolic/diastolic blood pressure, and higher incidence rate of previous history of hypertension, compared to those without vascular symptoms. BD patients with compressive symptoms had higher level of uric acid than those with non-compressive symptoms. The diameter of basilar artery correlated significantly with leukoencephalopathy.Conclusion:Patients with symptomatic BD have larger basilar diameter and higher blood pressure. The larger diameter of the basilar artery indicates the higher risk of leukoencephalopathy. We suggest that strict control of blood pressure in the early stage may be beneficial to reduce symptoms (especially the incidence of the vascular symptoms) of BD patients and uric acid lowering therapy may be considered for patients with high level of uric acid.