F01 — Vascular dementia

Concept, in one sentence

Dementia whose course and pattern point to cerebrovascular disease — typically stepwise decline with patchy cognitive deficits.

Decisive boundary cues

• Stepwise course tied to vascular events -> weighs toward F01 over F00's gradual course.
• Patchy cognitive profile -> weighs toward F01 over F00's more even multi-domain decline.
• A specific other identified disease -> weighs toward F02 instead of F01.

Duration/course cue

Often abrupt or stepwise, tied to vascular events; can also accumulate gradually with small-vessel disease.

Nearest alternatives

F00, F02, F05

Common mistake

Assuming any dementia in a person with hypertension or a stroke history is automatically vascular, without checking whether the course actually matches a stepwise pattern.

Retrieval prompt — one-line memory anchor

What single question would you ask first to check whether this decline followed a stepwise or a gradual course?