title: Evidence-based evaluation of magnetic resonance imaging as a diagnostic tool in dementia workup.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The diagnostic utility of magnetic resonance imaging in dementia workups has increased recently. The basic use is to exclude space-occupying processes in the brain. However, magnetic resonance imaging offers major opportunities for studying atrophy of specific brain areas. A great interest has been put in whether atrophy in the medial temporal lobe can serve as an early diagnostic marker for Alzheimer disease.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In this evaluation, we used evidence-based techniques and reviewed more than 400 articles that address this issue. Our main finding is that a variety of methods in studying brain areas were used, and this made it difficult to extract conclusive information in a systematic way.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  However, we were able to conclude that atrophy of the hippocampus can distinguish patients with Alzheimer disease from healthy subjects, but there was a lack of evidence because of insufficient studies concerning the usefulness of medial temporal lobe atrophy as a diagnostic marker in a more general setting.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, Caring Sciences and Society, Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. lars-olof.wahlund@ki.se
authors.forename: Lars-Olof
authors.initials: LO
authors.lastname: Wahlund
authors.forename: Ove
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Almkvist
authors.forename: Kaj
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Blennow
authors.forename: Knut
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Engedahl
authors.forename: Aki
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Johansson
authors.forename: Gunhild
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Waldemar
authors.forename: Henrike
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wolf
mesh_terms: D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015995:Prevalence; D011379:Prognosis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity