Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; Dementia; Geriatrics; Imaging; Risk factors.

Plain language summary

What is this summary about? This is a plain language summary of an article published in the journal Brain. People with Alzheimer's disease may receive treatments that target amyloid-β – a protein in the brain that is one of the key characteristics of Alzheimer's disease when it is present in higher levels than normal. This article is about amyloid-related imaging abnormalities (ARIA), which can be adverse events for people with Alzheimer's disease receiving antibody treatments targeting amyloid-β (known as anti–amyloid-β antibody treatments). This article also discusses ways to identify and manage ARIA.ARIA are adverse events that happen due to amyloid-β buildup in the brain or following treatments targeting amyloid-β. ARIA are identified on MRI scans as swelling or bleeding in the brain, and people with ARIA do not typically have symptoms. In rare cases, ARIA can cause serious symptoms or lead to disability.What are the key takeaways? There are two types of ARIA: ARIA-E (swelling in the brain) and ARIA-H (bleeding in the brain).Presence of an APOE ε4 gene variant and exposure to anti–amyloid-β antibody treatments are major risk factors for ARIA.With the recent availability in the clinic of antibody treatments targeting amyloid-β, increased awareness is needed to identify, monitor and manage ARIA effectively.What were the main conclusions reported by the researchers? Uniform detection, monitoring and management of ARIA are essential in patients receiving antibody treatments targeting amyloid-β. To increase ARIA detection in clinical trials and clinical practice, the authors recommend the implementation of uniform imaging protocols and rigorous reporting standards.