Brain Perfusion Imaging in Diagnosis of Dementia-brain Perfusion: SPECT/MRI-ASL

Abstract

Brain perfusion imaging using SPECT or arterial spin labeling by MRI is useful for early and differential diagnosis or prediction of prognosis of dementia as a supplementary objective biomarker. Although visual inspection is a basis for image evaluation, statistical evaluation after anatomic standardization of images is quite useful for accurate detection of subtle perfusion changes with good reproducibility. Statistical parametric mapping (SPM) that is the most common method for this statistical approach has been used for both research and clinical aspects. Moreover graph analysis of anatomically standardized brain perfusion images has been applied to evaluation of brain networks. Graph analysis can demonstrate small-world-ness and robustness of brain networks in dementia which cannot be revealed by SPM. This information about brain networks may be valuable for comprehension of pathophysiology and evaluation of therapeutic effects.