Affiliations: [a] Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada | [b] Injury Prevention Research Office, St. Michael's Hospital, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Correspondence:
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Correspondence to: Antonio Di Ieva, MD, PhD, Division of Neurosurgery, St. Michael's Hospital, 30 Bond Street, M5B 1W8 Toronto, ON, Canada. Tel.: +1 416 8645312/+1 647 530 4144; Fax: +1 416 8645857; E-mail: diieva@hotmail.com.
Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this manuscript.
Abstract: Currently, no clinical or neuroradiological techniques have been validated to distinguish Alzheimer's disease (AD) from idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (iNPH). Both share anatomical and clinical similarities: AD is a form of irreversible degenerative dementia, whereas the dementia manifested in iNPH is potentially “reversible” through various neurosurgical procedures. Hence, it is important to find specific imaging biomarkers that distinguish the two conditions. In addition, the ability to predict the response to neurosurgery in iNPH is something that has yet to be accomplished. In this systematic review, we describe and critically analyze the merits and drawbacks of the MR imaging parameters currently used to distinguish AD from iNPH and assess ways to predict the response after treatment of iNPH. We conclude that the combination of different neuroimaging sequences as well as quantitative and qualitative parameters could provide new insight for better diagnosis and treatment of these two different diseases.
Keywords: Alzheimer's disease, diagnostic imaging, idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus, magnetic resonance imaging, neuroimaging
