It is believed that the pathophysiology of AD starts years ahead of the manifestation of clinical signs, and this discovery mandates the use of methods to detect AD earlier than conventional diagnostic tools. However, advances in genetics, the development of biomarkers of neurodegeneration, and neuroimaging has lead to the incorporation of these modalities in the diagnosis of AD. The diagnosis of AD was mainly based on the clinical manifestation of symptoms. In 2012, the estimated overall care expenses accounted to US $200 billion. It is the sixth leading cause of mortality in the United States and causes a considerable financial burden to the country.
Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 60% to 80% of dementia cases, and the incidence increases with the age of the patients, especially older than 65 years. 1 Depending on the underlying pathology and clinical manifestation of the disease, dementia can be further grouped into Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Lewy body dementia (DLB), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), 2 and vascular dementia.
Identify the value and learn the appropriateness criteria for amyloid brain PET.ĭementia is a collective group of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by memory impairment and cognitive decline, leading to difficulty in performing activities of daily living that has been present for a minimum period of 6 months.
