Unbiased whole-brain analysis of gray matter loss in Alzheimer's disease

In patients with Alzheimer's disease, substantial tissue loss occurs in the medial temporal lobe. In this study, we applied a voxel-based, unbiased whole-brain analysis method to compare magnetic resonance imaging scans of seven patients with Alzheimer's disease and seven healthy elderly controls. Images were transformed to standard coordinate space and tested for gray matter loss in patients. We found symmetrical decreases of gray matter in patients in the hippocampus, and, unexpectedly, also in the head of the caudate nucleus and the insula. The exact role of these two structures in the symptomatology of Alzheimer's disease deserves further attention. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.