Prolongation of T2 relaxation times of hippocampus and amygdala in Alzheimer's disease

There exists controversy on the MR T-2 relaxometry of hippocampus in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of our study was to examine whether there was a prolonged T-2 relaxation time (T-2) in hippocampus and amygdala in AD, and whether in AD, the relaxometry data correlated to cognitive performance. In a 1.5 T MR scanner, T-2 of hippocampus and amygdala was measured from 51 patients with AD, 23 subjects with vascular dementia (VaD) and 31 healthy elderly controls. The cognitive performance was assessed with the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale - Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-Cog). The AD patients had longer T-2 in hippocampus and amygdala than VaD subjects and healthy elderly controls. In AD, the right hippocampal T-2 was correlated with ADAS-Cog scores, whereas amygdaloid T-2 was not. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.