Study of diffusion tensor imaging in patients with Alzheimer disease and mild cognitive impairment

Objective:To investigate the white matter integrity in patients with Alzheime disease(AD)and mild cognitive impairment(MCI)by using magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging.Method:21 AD patients,15 MCI patients and 20 healthy volunteers received diffusion tensor imaging.Fractional anisotropy(FA)in white matter were measured and compared in the interest regions respectively.Results:There were significant differences in frontal lobe,parietal lobe,temporal lobe and corpus callosum between patients with AD and patients with MCI,and between patients with AD and healthy volunteers.The patients with MCI only had more damages in white matter microstructure in temporal lobe and corpus callosum,compared with healthy volunteers.Conclusion:Differences can be found in white matter integrity between patients with AD and patients with MCI.Diffusion tensor imaging can provide earlier diagnostic index for MCI.