Neuroimaging standards for research into small vessel disease and its contribution to ageing and neurodegeneration.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Expert consensus position paper establishing standards with no new empirical data.
PubMed 23867200 · doi:10.1016/S1474-4422(13)70124-8
What was done
An international working group from the Centres of Excellence in Neurodegeneration conducted a structured consensus process to develop standardized definitions, image acquisition and analysis standards, scientific reporting criteria (STRIVE), and a review of emerging detection methods for MRI features of cerebral small vessel disease.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical findings. It provides consensus-derived terminology, acquisition guidelines, and reporting standards for markers of small vessel disease (such as recent small subcortical infarcts, lacunes, white matter hyperintensities, perivascular spaces, microbleeds, and brain atrophy).
Why it matters
Inconsistent definitions and protocols have long hindered research comparability; STRIVE provides a common framework to harmonize clinical research and practice regarding vascular contributions to neurodegeneration.
Limits
This is an expert consensus paper rather than a primary empirical study or formal systematic review. The abstract provides no quantitative validation metrics, sample sizes, or formal consensus voting statistics.
Cited by
- supports Small vessel disease causes lacunar infarcts that can be detected on MRI and lead to progressive cognitive decline.