Magnetic resonance imaging and histopathology in dementia, clinically of frontotemporal type

The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography findings in 28 patients with the clinical diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) were compared with the findings in a control group of 76 individuals without de mentia or stroke, A pattern of frontal and temporal atrophy with predominan tly frontal white matter changes was found in the FTD patients, and this wa s significantly different from the radiological findings in the control gro up, Six of the FTD patients have undergone autopsy, Histopathological evalu ation showed a primary cortical degenerative disease (frontal lobe degenera tion of non-Alzheimer type) in 3 of them, and primary white matter disorder , mainly frontal, of basically ischemic type (selective incomplete white ma tter infarction) in 3 of them, MRI could be a helpful tool to support the c linical diagnosis FTD, especially in young patients, MRI may also be helpfu l for the differentiation of a primary neurodegenerative from a mainly isch emic-vascular type of dementia, Copyright (C) 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel.