title: Auditory event-related potentials differentiate patients with normal pressure hydrocephalus and patients with concomitant Alzheimer's disease verified by brain biopsy.
abstract: We studied 51 patients with clinical symptoms and CT findings suggesting normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH). Tests included head MRI, auditory event-related potentials (ERPs), thorough neuropsychological testing and intraventricular intracranial 24 h pressure recording and infusion testing. A brain biopsy was also obtained to verify a concomitant dementing process (Alzheimer's disease; AD). Patients were divided into subgroups according to the need of shunt and the biopsy findings, and their ERPs were analysed blindly. The present results suggest that non-invasive ERPs aid in the differentiation of pure NPH from NPH with concomitant AD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Kuopio, Finland.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Savolainen
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Karhu
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pääkkönen
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Paljärvi
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Partanen
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Alafuzoff
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vapalahti
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005072:Evoked Potentials, Auditory / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006850:Hydrocephalus, Normal Pressure / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies