Towards Effective Diagnosis Of Alzheimer's Disease

An effective approach for differentiating Alzheimer's disease from other types of dementia has been sought in medicine for many years. Now, new insights into the rational use of neuroimaging technology may have solved the problem.

Recent data from the Bristol-Myers Squibb-sponsored Oxford Project to Investigate Memory and Ageing (OPTIMA) in the UK has revealed that combining computerized tomography (CT) with functional testing using Amersham's imaging agent Ceretec (99mTc/exametazime) can provide a detection rate of over 90%, with a false positive rate of less than 5%.

The procedure involves injection of Ceretec followed by visualization within the brain using a gamma camera and single photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT), to determine the rate of blood flow in different parts of the brain. This rate correlates to the functional activity of neurons in that area. The data is then superimposed onto a structural CT scan, in order to visualize the activity in specific areas.