Medical Student Research Forum Posters

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is directly associated with cognitivedecline and dementia1,2. AF can alter cerebral blood flow3, which may disrupt white matter (WM) integrity, and lead to cerebral vascular disease (CVD). Cerebral free water (FW), derived from Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI), can predict most subtle WM microstructuralchanges in young healthy adults4,5 and is strongly associated with WM injury in older adults6.  Fractional anisotropy (FA), also derived from DTI, is a sensitive measure of brain connectivity. Decreased FA is associated with poorer cognitive and executive function 7.  This study aimed to investigate whether AF is a risk factor for CVD in non-demented individuals using two biomarkers: cerebral FW and FA.