[<sup>18</sup>F]FDG-PET in Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease: Marker of Disease Spread

Vol. 19, No. 1, 2005

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Original Research Article

[¹⁸F]FDG-PET in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease: Marker of Disease Spread
D. Bittner^a,b, G. Grön^a,c, H. Schirrmeister^d, S.N. Reske^d, M.W. Riepe^a,b

^aMemory Clinic and Departments of
^bNeurology,
^cPsychiatry, and
^dNuclear Medicine, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany

Address of Corresponding Author

Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord 2005;19:24-30 (DOI: 10.1159/000080967)

Key Words

Alzheimer's disease
Dementia
Neuropsychology
FDG-PET
Staging

Abstract

Background: It is not known yet whether temporoparietal glucose hypometabolism in patients with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) reflects disease severity or different subtypes of patients. Methods: Twenty-five subjects with mild probable AD [NINCDS-ADRDA criteria; age 65.8 ± 9.3 years (mean ± SD); Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) 26.0 ± 3.3] were investigated. [¹⁸F]FDG-PET data were analyzed visually with raters blinded to the diagnosis and with a quantitative analysis in the region of interest on individual anatomically normalized PET scans. Results: Thirteen of 25 patients showed temporoparietal hypometabolism on visual inspection (PET+; age 65.7 ± 10.7), 12 patients had normal FDG-PET results (PET-; age 65.9 ± 8.0; n.s.). The MMSE and immediate reproduction of the Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS-R-I) were 27.7 ± 1.9 and 31.1 ± 6.1 in the PET- vs. 24.5 ± 3.6 (p = 0.012) and 22.0 ± 7.4 (p = 0.006) in the PET+ group. Immediate and delayed recall in the California Verbal Learning Test and delayed reproduction in the Wechsler Memory Scale were alike. Regression analysis revealed a significant correlation of temporoparietal glucose metabolism with the block span (r = 0.60; p < 0.01) and the WMS-R-I (r = 0.68; p < 0.01) but not with measures of hippocampal function. Conclusions: Temporoparietal glucose metabolism in patients with very mild AD is a sign of disease spread beyond the temporal lobe. This may aid in establishing objective parameters for future therapeutic studies.

Author Contacts

Prof. Dr. Matthias W. Riepe
Department of Neurology, University of Ulm
Steinhövelstrasse 1, DE-89075 Ulm (Germany)
Tel. +49 731 500 21430, Fax +49 731 500 26745
E-Mail matthias.riepe@medizin.uni-ulm.de

Article Information

Accepted: April 16, 2004
Published online: September 21, 2004
Number of Print Pages : 7
Number of Figures : 4, Number of Tables : 2, Number of References : 58

Medline Abstract (ID 15383742)

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