Role of white matter lesions, cerebral atrophy, and APOE on cognition in older persons with and without dementia: The Cache County, Utah, Study of Memory and Aging

Neuropsychological, qualitative, and quantitative magnetic resonance imaging findings were examined in subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD), non-AD dementia or mixed neuropsychiatric disorder, subjects characterized as mild/ambiguous, and controls, all with known apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype. Neuropsychological tasks included an expanded Consortium to Establish a Registery for Alzheimer's Disease (J. T. Tschanz et al., 2000; K. A. Welsh, J. M. Hoffman, N. L. Earl, & M. W. Hanson 1994) battery and the Mini-Mental Status Examination (M. F. Folstein, S. E. Folstein, & P. R. McHugh, 1975). Periventricular white matter lesions were the most clinically salient, and generalized measures of cerebral atrophy were the most significant quantitative indicators. APOE genotype was unrelated to imaging or neuropsychological performance. Neuropsychological relationships with neuroimaging findings depend on the qualitative or quantitative method used.