Clin Psychopharmacol Neurosci.  2018 May;16(2):144-152. 10.9758/cpn.2018.16.2.144.

Diagnostic Validity of an Automated Probabilistic Tractography in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment

• Jung WS
• Um YH
• Kang DW
• Lee CU
• Woo YS
• Bahk WM
• Lim HK

• KMID: 2412382
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.9758/cpn.2018.16.2.144

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
Although several prior works showed the white matter (WM) integrity changes in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and Alzheimer's disease, it is still unclear the diagnostic accuracy of the WM integrity measurements using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in discriminating aMCI from normal controls. The aim of this study is to explore diagnostic validity of whole brain automated probabilistic tractography in discriminating aMCI from normal controls.
METHODS
One hundred-two subjects (50 aMCI and 52 normal controls) were included and underwent DTI scans. Whole brain WM tracts were reconstructed with automated probabilistic tractography. Fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) values of the memory related WM tracts were measured and compared between the aMCI and the normal control groups. In addition, the diagnostic validities of these WM tracts were evaluated.
RESULTS
Decreased FA and increased MD values of memory related WM tracts were observed in the aMCI group compared with the control group. Among FA and MD value of each tract, the FA value of left cingulum angular bundle showed the highest area under the curve (AUC) of 0.85 with a sensitivity of 88.2%, a specificity of 76.9% in differentiating MCI patients from control subjects. Furthermore, the combination FA values of WM integrity measures of memory related WM tracts showed AUC value of 0.98, a sensitivity of 96%, a specificity of 94.2%.
CONCLUSION
Our results with good diagnostic validity of WM integrity measurements suggest DTI might be promising neuroimaging tool for early detection of aMCI and AD patients.

Keyword

Mild cognitive impairment; Diffusion tensor imaging; Diffusion tensor imaging; Biomarker

MeSH Terms

Alzheimer Disease
Anisotropy
Area Under Curve
Brain
Diffusion Tensor Imaging
Humans
Memory
Mild Cognitive Impairment*
Neuroimaging
Sensitivity and Specificity
White Matter