title: Hippocampal atrophy correlates with severe cognitive impairment in elderly patients with suspected normal pressure hydrocephalus.
abstract: Measurements of hippocampal formation atrophy using MRI have been useful in distinguishing demented patients with a diagnosis of probable Alzheimer's disease from cognitively normal controls. To determine whether there is a similar relationship between hippocampal size and dementia in elderly patients suspected of normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH), the authors obtained mini-mental status examination (MMSE) scores and MRI measurements of hippocampal size and CSF volume on 16 elderly patients whose severe ventriculomegaly and unexplained gait impairment made NPH a probable diagnosis. Hippocampal size correlated strongly with MMSE score (r = 0.75, p < 0.001); no significant MMSE correlation was found for ventricular CSF volume or extra-ventricular/ventricular CSF ratio. It was concluded that hippocampal atrophy is associated with severe cognitive dysfunction in many elderly patients with a diagnosis of NPH. As a hypothesis for further investigation, the detection of such atrophy may help identify cases where the presence of a pathology of Alzheimer's disease complicates the diagnosis of NPH.
authors.affiliation: New York University Medical Center, Department of Neurology, NY.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Golomb
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: de Leon
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: George
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kluger
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Convit
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Rusinek
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: de Santi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Litt
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Foo
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Ferris
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000473:pathology*; D001284:Atrophy / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D006850:Hydrocephalus, Normal Pressure / Q000473:pathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male