White matter hyperintensity (WMH) is one of the major imaging markers of cerebral small vascular disease, which is prevalent in the elderly. At present, the pathogenesis of WMH is not clear, most of the previous studies focused on the arterial system, but the role of the venous system in WMH is attracting more and more attention. Small venous collagen hyperplasia, downstream intracranial venous dilatation and internal jugular venous reflux may be involved in the formation and development of white matter hyperintensity.

With the development of neuroimaging technology, cerebral small vessel disease has become a hot research topic in recent years. It has been clearly related to cognitive decline, dementia and gait instability. However, recent studies have found that small cerebral vascular disease with white matter hyperintensities is the main cause of chronic dizziness in the elderly, but the pathogenesis is not completely clear, which may be related to brain neural network disconnection, visual dependence, eye movement disorder caused by abnormal brain tissue structure, oxidative stress regulation disorder, cerebral blood flow self-regulation disorder, and the interaction mechanism between vestibular system and emotional disorder.