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Updated: Apr 7, 2026

Hybrid PET/MRI Imaging of Alzheimer's Disease Based on 18F-AV-1451
Published on: April 18, 2025
Amyloid imaging for dementia in clinical practice
John T O'Brien1, Karl Herholz2
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Box 189, Level E4 Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge, CB2 0SP, UK. john.obrien@medschl.cam.ac.uk.
Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning for brain amyloid is valuable for diagnosing dementia, particularly Alzheimer's disease, in complex cases. Wider adoption faces cost and treatment limitations but holds promise for clinical trials and dementia classification.
Area of Science:
- Neuroimaging
- Neurology
- Biomarkers
Background:
- Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning is a key research tool for in vivo imaging of brain amyloid in dementia studies.
- Three amyloid PET ligands are currently licensed for clinical use, aiding in challenging dementia diagnoses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the diagnostic value of amyloid PET in confirming or excluding Alzheimer's disease in cases with diagnostic uncertainty.
- To explore the potential of amyloid imaging in stratifying subjects for prognostic studies and therapeutic trials.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing in vivo imaging techniques, specifically positron emission tomography (PET) scanning.
- Employing licensed amyloid PET ligands for diagnostic and research purposes.
Main Results:
- Amyloid PET is diagnostically valuable in select challenging cases of dementia.
- Wider clinical adoption for early disease detection is limited by cost and the absence of effective disease-modifying treatments.
Conclusions:
- Amyloid imaging can improve the efficiency and reduce the duration of prognostic studies and therapeutic trials.
- Combined use of amyloid imaging with other biomarkers and genetics may redefine dementia classification.
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Published on: March 7, 2019
10:04Imaging Amyloid Tissues Stained with Luminescent Conjugated Oligothiophenes by Hyperspectral Confocal Microscopy and Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging
Published on: October 20, 2017
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