Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2012 Nov;27(7):520-9.
doi: 10.1177/1533317512459798. Epub 2012 Sep 17.

Neuropsychological and neuroimaging markers in early versus late-onset Alzheimer's disease

Natalie C Kaiser  1 , Rebecca J Melrose, Collin Liu, David L Sultzer, Elvira Jimenez, Michael Su, Lorena Monserratt, Mario F Mendez
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Neuropsychological and neuroimaging markers in early versus late-onset Alzheimer's disease

Natalie C Kaiser et al. Am J Alzheimers Dis Other Demen. 2012 Nov.

Abstract

Background: Early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD) has been overshadowed by the more common late-onset AD (LOAD). Yet, the literature indicates EOAD may have less hippocampal-memory presentations and more focal neocortical localization early in the disease.

Objective: To evaluate these proposed differences between these 2 forms of AD and to explore what they inform about differences in AD pathophysiology.

Methods: In all, 21 patients with EOAD and 24 patients with LOAD matched for disease progression and severity were compared on neurocognitive measures and resting state fluorodeoxy-glucose positron-emission tomography (FDG-PET).

Results: Patients with EOAD had worse executive functions with greater hypometabolism in the parietal regions; whereas patients with LOAD had worse confrontation naming and verbal recognition memory with greater hypometabolism in inferior frontotemporal regions.

Conclusions: In addition to highlighting significant differences between EOAD and LOAD, these results reveal dissociation between executive deficits in AD and frontal hypometabolism, suggesting early disturbances of the parietal-frontal network in EOAD.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Base comparison of EOAD relative to LOAD. Two-sample t test comparison shows relative hypometabolism in the EAD group (blue) and relative hypometabolism in the LAD group (red; uncorrected P = .01, T = 2.43, kc = 10 voxels). Picture is in neurological convention; brain’s left is your left. EOAD indicates early-onset Alzheimer’s disease; LOAD, late-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Axial image of regional hypometabolism in representative patients with EOAD and LOAD. Arrows highlight areas of hypometabolism for each respective patient; for patients with EOAD, hypometabolism seen in the parietal region, whereas in LOAD, hypometabolism seen in the inferior frontal region. Picture is in neurological convention; brain’s left is your left.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Renvoize E, Hanson M, Dale M. Prevalence and causes of young onset dementia in an English health district. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2011;26(1):106–107. - PubMed
    1. Loring DW, Largen JW. Neuropsychological patterns of presenile and senile dementia of the Alzheimer type. Neuropsychologia. 1985;23(3):351–357. - PubMed
    1. Filley CM, Kelly J, Heaton RK. Neuropsychologic features of early- and late-onset Alzheimer's disease. Arch Neurol. 1986;43(6):574–576. - PubMed
    1. Seltzer B SI. A. comparison of clinical features in early-and-late-onset primary degenerative dementia. One entity or two? Archives of Neurology. 1983;40(3):143–146. - PubMed
    1. Kim EJ, Cho SS, Jeong Y, et al. . Glucose metabolism in early onset versus late onset Alzheimer's disease: an SPM analysis of 120 patients. Brain. 2005;128(pt 8):1790–1801. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances