Using Fractional Anisotropy Imaging to Detect Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease among Mexican Americans and Non-Hispanic Whites: A HABLE Study

Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most frequently occurring neurodegenerative disease; however, little work has been conducted examining biomarkers of AD among Mexican Americans. Here, we examined diffusion tensor MRI marker profiles for detecting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia in a multi-ethnic cohort. Methods: 3T MRI measures of fractional anisotropy (FA) were examined among 1,636 participants of the ongoing community-based Health & Aging Brain among Latino Elders (HABLE) community-based study (Mexican American n = 851; non-Hispanic white n = 785). Results: The FA profile was highly accurate in detecting both MCI (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] = 0.99) and dementia (AUC = 0.98). However, the FA profile varied significantly not only between diagnostic groups but also between Mexican Americans and non-Hispanic whites. Conclusion: Findings suggest that diffusion tensor imaging markers may have a role in the neurodiagnostic process for detecting MCI and dementia among diverse populations.

Automated summary

The study found that diffusion tensor MRI marker profiles were accurate in detecting mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia, but showed significant variations between different populations.