Binswanger's disease: a cause of dementia in the elderly.

South Med J. 1988 Oct; 81(10):1329-30.SM

Evaluation of dementia has expanded as our attention to the aged and their maladies has increased. Alzheimer's disease continues to occupy the number one position as a cause of dementia, but vascular dementia also assumes great importance as one of the preventable causes of mental deterioration. Binswanger's disease, a type of vascular or multi-infarct dementia, will be seen more as our diagnostic technologies improve. An appropriate clinical picture combined with normal laboratory values and a CT brain scan with white matter lucencies and frequent basal ganglia infarcts confirm the diagnosis of Binswanger's. Treatment is symptomatic, with prevention of further infarcts.