Regional magnetization transfer ratio changes in mild cognitive impairment

Reduction in temporal lobe volume is consistently found in dementia of Alzheimer's type (DAT). However, due to the lack of a consistent association between brain volume and cognitive decline in mild cognitive impairment (MCI), volumetric measures are not a reliable predictor for the progression...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Magnetic resonance in medicine 2002-01, Vol.47 (1), p.143-148
Main Authors: Kabani, Noor Jehan, Sled, John G., Shuper, Anita, Chertkow, Howard
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Alzheimer Disease - pathology
Alzheimer's disease
Biological and medical sciences
Brain - pathology
Cognition Disorders - pathology
Female
Humans
Image Processing, Computer-Assisted
Investigative techniques, diagnostic techniques (general aspects)
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
magnetization transfer ratio
Male
Medical sciences
mild cognitive impairment
Nervous system
Radiodiagnosis. Nmr imagery. Nmr spectrometry
volumetric measurement
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Summary:Reduction in temporal lobe volume is consistently found in dementia of Alzheimer's type (DAT). However, due to the lack of a consistent association between brain volume and cognitive decline in mild cognitive impairment (MCI), volumetric measures are not a reliable predictor for the progression of the disease. In our study, we hypothesized that changes in the magnetization transfer ratio (MTR) may reflect underlying brain pathology in the absence of quantifiable volumetric changes. Such a measure may be used as a predictor for abnormal cognitive decline in elderly subjects. The study was carried out on 15 normal elderly controls, 11 subjects with DAT, and 12 subjects with MCI. We used MTRs with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect tissue changes in the four lobes of each hemisphere, and compared that to the volumetric changes in the same regions. Our results indicate that the MTR of both temporal lobes is significantly reduced in subjects with MCI in the absence of significant volumetric changes. In comparison, DAT subjects have significantly reduced temporal lobe volumes and MTR. We conclude that changes in MTR have the potential to mark the progression of MCI to DAT, before volumetric changes are detected on conventional MRI scans.
ISSN:0740-3194
1522-2594
DOI:10.1002/mrm.10028