Neurodegeneration with dementia: From fundamentals of pathology to clinical imaging by MRI and SPECT

The increasing incidence of neurodegenerative disorders with dementia (NDD) requires structural and functional imaging methods which are easily available in the clinical setting. The diagnostic work-up for patients who have NDD includes magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT), and positron emission tomography (PET). Both, MRI and SPECT can show characteristic findings of NDD. However, the interpretation of these findings has to be done in the context of clinical data, which includes biochemical and histological examinations. In this article, we review recent advances in pathology and the impact of these advances on MRI and SPECT studies interpretations. We present a literature review describing typical MRI and SPECT findings and the diagnostic accuracies reported for NDD. Combining MRI and SPECT examinations with quantitative evaluation of clinical data further improves the diagnostic potential of these imaging procedures for NDD.