Variable Details
Available Studies
ROS, MAP, MARS, Clinical Core, LATC
Categories
Pathology
Cerebral atherosclerosis
Cerebral Atherosclerosis Rating - 4 levels (None - severe)
Large vessel cerebral atherosclerosis rating was made by visual inspection after paraformaldehyde fixation, at the Circle of Willis at the base of the brain, and included evaluation of the vertebral, basilar, posterior cerebral, middle cerebral, and anterior cerebral arteries and their proximal branches. Severity was graded by visual examination of the extent of involvement of each artery and number of arteries involved. Arteries were bisected for evaluation of luminal narrowing when there was concern by appearance or palpation for occlusion; and degree of occlusion was also considered in the final score. We did not consider tortuosity or aneurysmal dilatation, and did not perform histologic evaluation.
We used a semiquantitative scale from 0 (no atherosclerosis) to 6 (severe atherosclerosis) (variable = cvda), which was then collapsed into 4 levels for analyses:
| Value | Coding | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | None or Possible | No significant atherosclerosis observed |
| 1 | Mild | Small amounts in up to several arteries (typically less than 25% vessel involvement) without significant occlusion |
| 2 | Moderate | In up to half of all visualized major arteries, with less than 50% occlusion of any single vessel |
| 3 | Severe | In more than half of all visualized arteries, and/or more than 75% occlusion of one or more vessels |