Hereditary forms of subcortical small vessel disease. The need for registries

Hereditary forms of subcortical small vessel disease (SSVD) leading to vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) comprise a heterogeneous group of rare genetic disorders, suitable for the study of the mechanisms and relationship between SSVD and VCI. Since these disorders are rare, better knowledge of their clinical, genetic, imaging and biochemical characteristics may be achievable only through registries which additional may help in better recruitment of patients for studies. A great amount of our current knowledge on these disorders has been gained through registries and data bases. International registries may further help in expanding our experience in epidemiological or even preventive and therapeutic aspects of hereditary SSVD.