Cerebral Microbleeds and Long-Term Cognitive Outcome: Longitudinal Cohort Study of Stroke Clinic Patients

<i>Background:</i> Vascular cognitive impairment causes significant disability in the elderly and is common following ischaemic stroke. Although the underlying mechanisms and prognostic factors remain unclear, small vessel diseases are known to contribute. Cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) manifestation of small vessel diseases and may contribute to vascular cognitive impairment, particularly frontal-executive functions. We hypothesized that baseline CMBs would predict long-term cognitive outcome, specifically frontal-executive function. <i>Methods:</i> A cohort of consecutive patients found to have CMBs when first referred to a strok…