A Review of Functional Neuroimaging in People with Down Syndrome with and without Dementia.

Dement Geriatr Cogn Dis Extra

Department of Psychological Medicine, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom.

Published: December 2021

AI Article Synopsis

  • Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) have a high risk of dementia, making early diagnosis challenging, but neuroimaging emerges as a promising diagnostic tool.
  • A review of studies found that neuroimaging techniques like PET scans showed distinct brain function changes in DS individuals with dementia, such as reduced glucose metabolism and specific chemical changes in the brain.
  • While neuroimaging could help in early dementia detection for those with DS, more long-term studies are needed to confirm its effectiveness.

Article Abstract

Background: Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) are at high risk of dementia which is difficult to diagnose in DS. Neuroimaging has been identified as a potential tool to aid diagnosis by detecting changes in brain function. We carried out a review comparing functional neuroimaging in DS individuals with and without dementia.

Summary: A literature search was conducted using PubMed to identify relevant studies. In DS subjects with dementia, fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography (PET) studies showed glucose hypometabolism particularly in the parietal and/or temporal regions whilst magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies showed increased myoinositol and decreased N-acetylaspartate. Ligand-based PET studies revealed significant Pittsburgh compound B binding in DS subjects over the age of 40, particularly if they had dementia.

Key Messages: Neuroimaging may aid the early detection of dementia in DS; however, further longitudinal studies are required.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8787537PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1159/000520880DOI Listing

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