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A Clinicopathological Study of CT Scans in Alzheimer's Disease
Author(s) -
Mendez Mario F.,
Mastri Angeline R.,
Zander Beth A.,
Frey William H.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/j.1532-5415.1992.tb02014.x
Subject(s) - medicine , dementia , disease , alzheimer's disease , atrophy , central nervous system disease , degenerative disease , retrospective cohort study , radiology , pathology
Objective To investigate the accuracy of cranial computerized tomography (CT) scans in distinguishing patients with Alzheimer's disease from those with other dementing conditions. Design Retrospective clinicopathological correlation with pre‐mortem CT scans. Setting Urban and rural hospitals and nursing homes in the Upper Midwest. Patients All 507 patients had clinical dementia diagnosed as Alzheimer's disease during life and the subsequent referral of their brains to a dementia brain bank. Of these, 375 patients had had CT scans as part of the diagnostic work‐up for dementia. Main Outcome Measures The presence of neuropathological evidence of Alzheimer's disease and the specific findings on CT scans. Results Of the 375 patients evaluated with a CT, 28% were misdiagnosed (lacked neuropathological evidence of Alzheimer's disease); of the 132 patients evaluated without a CT scan, only 18% were misdiagnosed ( P < 0.05). The degree of atrophy and other CT findings were similar in the correctly diagnosed and misdiagnosed groups except for increased ventricular size in the correctly diagnosed patients ( P < 0.05). Conclusion Although CT scans do not usually contribute to the recognition of Alzheimer's disease, the presence of ventricular enlargement may help distinguish Alzheimer's disease from other dementias.