title: The neural correlates of anomia in the conversion from mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer's disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Language impairment is frequently observed in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD): in this study, we investigated the extent and distribution of brain atrophy in subjects with conversion from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to AD with and without naming difficulties.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was approved by the institutional review board and was HIPAA compliant. All subjects or their legal representatives gave informed consent for participation. Ninety-one subjects from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) with (N = 51) and without (N = 40) naming impairment as per the Boston Naming Test (BNT), underwent brain magnetic resonance (MR) imaging 12 months before, at AD diagnosis, and 12 months after. Structural MR images were processed using voxel-based morphometry. Cross-sectional comparisons and mixed ANOVA models for assessing regional gray matter (GM) volume differences were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  As from 12 months prior to AD diagnosis, patients with naming difficulties showed distinct areas of greater GM loss in the left fusiform gyrus (Brodmann area 20) than patients without naming difficulties. Differences in the GM atrophy extended to the left hemisphere in the subsequent 12 months.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study provided evidence of distinct patterns and dynamics of brain atrophy in AD patients with naming difficulties when compared to those with intact language, as early as 12 months prior to AD diagnosis and in the subsequent 12 months.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA. emanuele.pravata@gmail.com.|Department of Neuroradiology, Neurocenter of Southern Switzerland, Ospedale Regionale di Lugano, Via Tesserete 46, 6900, Lugano, Switzerland. emanuele.pravata@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Emanuele
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pravatà
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Joshua
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tavernier
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Parker
authors.affiliation: University Hospital Dubrava, Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: Hrvoje
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Vavro
authors.affiliation: Clinical Biotechnology Research Institute, Roper Hospital, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Jacobo E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Mintzer
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.
authors.forename: Maria Vittoria
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Spampinato
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000209:etiology*; D000849:Anomia / Q000150:complications*; D001284:Atrophy; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000150:complications*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors
keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Anomia; Language; Magnetic resonance imaging; Voxel-based morphometry