Accelerated brain aging on MRI has shown to be able to predict cognitive decline, potentially allowing disease to be detected earlier on MRI scans. This project aims to extend the aging detection methods to detect the "wrinkles" of cerebral blood flow. Although we know that the brain's blood flow is implicated in many diseases, it is not often clinically measured with MRI. This project aims to change this.
In this project, called "Cerebrovascular Brain-age", eScience will help researchers in Amsterdam UMC and worldwide to improve the detection of blood flow patterns related to accelerated aging and ultimately cognitive decline. We will create artificial intelligence methods that can detect these cerebral blood flow "wrinkles" from any MRI scanner worldwide. Finally, we will incorporate all these in a software package that can be easily used by everyone. Ultimately, we hope to improve early disease detection and treatment evaluation.