Amyloid Angiopathy, Alzheimer Disease, and Hemorrhagic Stroke

The number of disease processes that can lead to stroke is quite overwhelming. High blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, blood clots and other embolic materials, drugs, migraines, etc. The list goes on and on.

Amyloid angiopathy is a fairly common cause of stroke. This process consists o the accumulation of high levels of amyloid protein (a protein that is found in the so called neuritic plaques of Alzheimer disease) along the walls of blood vessels inside the brain, causing them to become inflamed, and to bleed under certain circumstances.

Bleeding because of amyloid angiopathy is a common cause of hemorrhagic strokes in the elderly. Unfortunately, this disease is not usually diagnosed until bleeding in the brain has already occurred. Even more frustrating is the fact that no treatment is available.

The immune system appears to be an important culprit in the development of amyloid angiopathy and a great deal of research is currently being performed with the goal of developing new therapies for this insidious disease.

Recommended reading:
Amyloid Angiopathy and Stroke
What is a stroke?
Stroke Diagnosis