Abstract: Objective  To investigate the relationship between common amino acids in the blood and early mild leukoaraiosis (LA) in middle-aged and older people and its diagnostic value in screening for mild LA. Methods  Patients who were hospitalized in the Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinzhou Medical University with complaints of dizziness or headache from August 2020 to November 2021 were included in this study,and 21 non-LA patients and 31 patients with mild LA were enrolled based on the results of head magnetic resonance imaging(MRI). Tandem mass spectrometry was used to collect the levels of 23 blood amino acid metabolites from the patients,and the differences in blood amino acid levels between the two groups were compared. Logistic regression analysis models and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to investigate the independent risk factors for mild LA and the screening and diagnostic value of blood amino acid levels for mild LA.  Results  The differences in age,history of coronary artery disease,tyrosine and valine were statistically significant in the non-LA group compared with the mild LA group (P < 0.05). Multifactorial Logistic regression indicated that age (OR=1.232,95% CI: 1.068-1.420) and valine levels (OR=1.059,95% CI: 1.009-1.111) were independent risk factors affecting mild LA,and increasing age and elevated valine levels increased the risk of developing mild LA. The results of the ROC curve analysis indicated that the optimal cut-off values for age and valine screening for mild LA were 58.5 years and 96.305 μmol/L,respectively,with an area under the ROC curve of 0.710 (95%CI: 0.565-0.856,P<0.05) and 0.674 (95%CI: 0.509-0.840,P<0.05),respectively. Conclusion  Changes in blood levels of common amino acids correlate with early mild LA,and increasing age and elevated valine levels are independent risk factors for mild LA,both of which are of clinical value in screening for mild LA.

Key words: leukoaraiosis, amino acids, valine