Zina Hijazi

Dementia with Lewy bodies is a common form of neurodegenerative dementia, but despite this, has been less researched and is less understood than other dementia types. In some people living with dementia, certain brain changes that are caused by brain vessel disease are more common. Some examples of these changes are tiny strokes or small bleeds in the brain called microbleeds. These can usually be seen on MRI scans of the brain, but their significance in dementia is uncertain.

The initial part of the study involved a systematic search for all published studies on brain vessel diseases in Dementia with Lewy bodies. Studies suggested that some changes relating to brain vessel diseases (tiny infarcts, microbleeds and areas of increased brightness on MRI, called white matter hyperintensities) appear to be more common in people with Dementia with Lewy bodies.

The second part of the project involved studying MRI brain changes in 22 people living with Dementia with Lewy bodies who participated in the study. In participants with Dementia with Lewy bodies, microbleeds were seen on the MRI brain scans in 14%. The location of the microbleeds in these participants suggested that they may be a result of certain contributing disease processes, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

This research provides a framework for further studies on these brain changes, including why they may be more prevalent in Dementia with Lewy bodies and what effects they may have in people with Dementia with Lewy bodies.

Hijazi, Z, Yassi, N, O’Brien, J T, Watson, R. The influence of cerebrovascular disease in dementia with Lewy bodies and Parkinson’s disease dementia. European Journal of Neurology. 2022;00: 1-12. doi:10.1111/ene.15211

Chin KS, Hijazi Z, Churilov L, Gajamange S, Desmond PM, Villemagne V, Rowe C, Yassi N, Watson R. Cerebral microbleeds in dementia with Lewy bodies. Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2022 Nov;104:68-71. doi:10.1016/j.parkreldis.2022.10.009

At the time of the award, Dr Hijazi was an Advanced Trainee in Geriatric Medicine, based at the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health and worked at Austin Health in the residential aged care outreach program.