Amyloid PET imaging in the timely diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Role of amyloid PET imaging in the timely diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease in patients with underlying depression or vitamin B12/Folate deficiency: Feasibility study.
IRAS ID
159943
Contact name
Rajesh Abraham
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
R&D Sussexpartnership NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Increasing evidence supports a role of abnormally accumulated amyloid protein in the development of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Recent data from clinical trials measuring amyloid has shown that about 25% of patients may incorrectly be diagnosed with AD. These patients either had normal amyloid beta-42 levels on CSF analysis or no amyloid was detected on research PET scans. Misdiagnosis can have significant effect on patients and may stop further investigation to determine the real cause of memory impairment, missing a potentially treatable cause. Conditions such as depression (with or without alcoholism), and vitamin B12/folate deficiency are associated with cognitive impairment in their own right and are not uncommon among older people. Early differentiation between AD and these conditions will inform practice and lead to correct and timely management of patients. Amyloid imaging may play a very useful role in clinical settings to confirm or exclude AD in such patient populations. Further, the correct identification of patients who may benefit the most from amyloid imaging is important due to both cost and availability of PET scanning.
REC name
London - Surrey Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/2276
Date of REC Opinion
6 Feb 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion