Purpose: To evaluate the value of diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) histogram analysis in discern white matter (WM) injury in vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) patients, and to determine whether DKI parameters could provide additional information in comparison to DTI parameters in understanding structural tissue changes. Materials and Methods: DKI was performed in 34 VCI subjects and 43 age- and sex-matched cognitive-normal subcortical ischemic vascular disease (SIVD) subjects (controls). Histograms of diffusion tensor and diffusion kurtosis derived parameters including fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, axial diffusivity, radial diffusivity, mean kurtosis (MK), axial kurtosis, and radial kurtosis for whole brain white matter (WBWM) and normal-appearing WM (NAWM) in each subject were obtained, and then evaluated to detect changes in WBWM and NAWM in VCI patients compared with controls. Pearson correlation coefficient analysis was performed to correlate DKI and DTI histogram-derived measures with cognitive dysfunction in VCI patients. Results:Significant differences in most of the parameters derived from the histogram analysis were observed in VCI patients compared with controls. Further, the severity of cognitive dysfunction was significantly correlated with the mean MK and MK histogram peak location of the WBWM and NAWM. Conclusions: Our data suggest that both DKI and DTI can reveal microstructural alternation of WM in SVCI patients. Mean MK and MK histogram peak location may be better markers of VCI by measuring the relationship between WM abnormality and the severity of cognitive impairment. DKI could provide important information on microstructural changes in VCI patients.