MAGNETIC-RESONANCE-IMAGING ANALYSIS OF AGE-RELATED-CHANGES IN THE BRAINS OF INDIVIDUALS WITH DOWNS-SYNDROME

Neuroanatomic characteristics of the brains of individuals with Down's syndrome (DS) are typically characterized at autopsy. Apparent anatom ic differences in brain between DS and normal individuals are observab le upon gross inspection of MRIs, Area measurements from coronal MRIs are used in this study to determine quantitative structural difference s that may occur in DS and during aging. In DS individuals, a signific antly larger parahippocampal gyrus, and smaller hippocampus and neocor tex, are reported relative to age-matched controls. We also examine tw o DS individuals with a clinical diagnosis of dementia who exhibit atr ophy similar to that typically observed in Alzheimer's disease. MRI ap pears to be a useful tool for quantitative anatomic analysis and may b e beneficial for determining baseline anatomic measures that can be us eful in the diagnosis of changes associated with dementia.