Aims: Our purpose was to investigate differences in neuropsychological characteristics and glucose metabolism between early-onset mild cognitive impairment (EOMCI) and late onset MCI (LOMCI) patients and to determine if the baseline differences are predictive of conversion to dementia. Methods: We enrolled 28 patients with MCI (12 EOMCI, 16 LOMCI) and 2 age-matched control groups. At the end of a 5-year follow-up, we compared the baseline neuropsychological and PET data between converters and nonconverters. Results: The EOMCI patients obtained significantly higher scores in verbal recall and word fluency tests than the LOMCI patients. The EOMCI group, compared to the young controls, demonstrated hypometabolism in brain regions vulnerable in mild Alzheimer’s disease. Converters were significantly more impaired in the delayed verbal recall test than nonconverters (p = 0.028) and tended to be more impaired in the semantic word fluency test (p = 0.084). The baseline PET scan of the converters demonstrated severer hypometabolism in frontal areas than that of the nonconverters both in the EOMCI and LOMCI groups. Conclusion: Our study suggests that EOMCI patients may differ from LOMCI in the patterns of cognitive deficits and glucose hypometabolism. In addition, baseline neuropsychological and FDG-PET findings suggest that MCI patients with poor memory or frontal dysfunction are at greater risk of conversion to dementia.

Keywords:
Mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s disease, Neuropsychological assessment, PET
This content is only available via PDF.
© 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel
2010
Copyright / Drug Dosage / Disclaimer
Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug.
Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.
You do not currently have access to this content.