A study of positron emission tomography and neuropsychological test in the patients with mild cognitive impairment

Objective To study the features of regional cerebral metabolism rate of glucose in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) by positron emission tomography (PET) and their relationships with neuropsychological tests. Method The PET.Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE),Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS) and global deterioration scale(GDS) were conducted in 10 patients with MCI and 10 health volunteers as controls (HC).Results (1)The scores of MMSE and WMS in the MCI patients were lower than that in HC(P0.01).(2)The regional cerebral metabolism rate of glucose (rCMRglc) in the left orbital gyrus,right middle temporal gyrus and right putamen was lower in MCI group than that in HC group (P0.05-0.01).(3)The rCMRglc in orbital gyrus,putamen,left hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus,cingulate gyrus,left amygdaloid body,precentral gyrus,postcentral gyrus and medial occipitotemporal gyrus was negatively correlated with age,while it was positively correlated with MMSE score in left putamen,temporal lobe,anterior cingulate gyrus,left insular lobe,amygdaloid body,precentral gyrus,postcentral gyrus and medial occipitotemporal gyrus,and it was correlated positively with WMS score in left putamen,temporal lobe,left insular lobe,precentral gyrus and postcentral gyrus,and correlated positively with education in right putamen,right inferior temporal gyrus,precentral gyrus,left poscentral gyrus. Conclusion The rCMRglc is lowered in MCI patients and correlated with the cognitive impairment severity,age,and education.