CT STUDY IN SENILE DEMENTIA OF ALZHEIMER-TYPE

We evaluated 14 patients with senile dementia of Alzheimer type (SDA 1) and 15 age-matched normal elderly controls using psychological tests and computed tomography scans. The low-density rate (LDR) was used as an index of brain atrophy. SDAT patients had significantly higher scores on the Hasegawa Dementia Scale (p < 0.01) and significantly lower scores on the Bender Gestalt Test (p < 0.01) than control subjects. The LDRs of the left and right hemispheres were significantly higher in the SDAT group than in the control group in all three slices investigated (p < 0.05/6 = 0.0083). In the control group, the LDR was higher in the left hemisphere than in the right hemisphere in one slice (p < 0.05/6 = 0.0083). In SDAT patients, significant diagnosis by hemisphere interaction was observed in one slice (p < 0.05), with higher LDR on the left than on the right (p < 0.05/6 = 0.0083). Our findings suggest that cortical atrophy is predominant on the left side in patients with SDAT.