Artificial intelligence can detect dementia years before symptoms appear

Researchers at the University of Cambridge say that artificial intelligence can detect early signs of dementia through a simple brain scan long before the main symptoms appear, and in some cases even before any symptoms appear

Dementia is characterized by the accumulation of different types of proteins in the brain, which damage brain tissue and cause cognitive decline

The molecular and cellular changes in the brain usually begin many years before any symptoms appear

MRI brain scan of healthy volunteers

A team led by Professor Zoe Kotzy of the University of Cambridge and the Allen Turing Institute has developed machine learning tools that can detect dementia in patients at a very early stage

For those patients who exhibit mild cognitive impairment (signs of memory loss or problems with language or visual/spatial perception), the algorithm is more than 80% accurate in predicting patients who continue to develop Alzheimer's disease

An MRI brain scan of a patient with Alzheimer's disease

Professor Cortez from the Department of Psychology at the University of Cambridge said: “We have trained machine learning algorithms to find early signs of dementia by looking for patterns of gray matter loss in the brain

"We have even been able to identify some patients who have yet to show any symptoms but have developed Alzheimer's disease

"Over time, as part of the health check, we hope to be able to detect patients 5 to 10 years before they develop symptoms

Although the algorithm has been optimized to look for signs of Alzheimer's disease, Professor Kotzy and colleagues are now training it to recognize different forms of dementia, each with its own pattern of volume loss

Dr.

"We have proven that this method is effective in a research environment-we now need to test it in a'real world' environment," Dr.

So far, about 80 patients have participated in the trial, which was conducted by the University of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust and two NHS Trusts in Brighton

Dr.

"If we detect this disease early, we can suggest life>

-Dr.
Timothy Ritman

At present, there are very few drugs to treat dementia
.
One reason that clinical trials often fail is believed to be that once a patient develops symptoms, it may be too late to make major changes
.
Therefore, the ability to identify individuals at a very early stage can help researchers develop new drugs
.

If the trial is successful, the algorithm can be extended to thousands of patients across the country
.

Suffering from Alzheimer's disease

Dennis Clark, Ardenbrook's patient, was one of the first people in the country to participate in the new trial
.
Before the lockdown, the 75-year-old retired sales director and his wife, Petunia, enjoyed their retirement together, went on vacation, and walked two dogs
.
But Petunia quickly noticed that he was starting to forget
.

"If I asked him to do something, he would do the opposite
.
Then when we went out to eat—we didn’t go out for a long time due to confinement—he didn't remember how to pay
.
"

When Dennis was always proud of her appearance, Petunia decided to call the family doctor for help because Dennis started wearing the same clothes over and over again
.

The GP did a quick check on the phone and said Dennis needed a referral
.
I heard that Ardenbrook has a very comprehensive memory unit, so I am really happy that we can be recommended there
.

"We conducted a preliminary consultation and were asked if we want to continue the research.
This is what I very much hope Dennis will do, because it will not only help him but also help others
.
"

Dennis underwent an MRI scan, and later that day, he and Petunia received news that his results were consistent with early-onset Alzheimer's disease
.
Dennis will start taking medication to help treat the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease
.

"We are very grateful to Ardenbrook and will recommend others to also conduct the trial
.
A faster diagnosis means that Dennis will be able to start drug treatment, which will hopefully delay his illness
.
It also means that we can plan for the future and start Accept what is happening
.
"

Quote:

“Predicting future regional tau accumulation in asymptomatic and early Alzheimer's disease” by Joseph Giorgio, William J Jagust, Suzanne Baker, Susan M.
Landau, Peter Tino and Zoe Kourtzi for the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, 17 August 2020, bioRxiv .

DOI: 10.
1101 /2020.
08.
15.
252601

"Modelling prognostic trajectories of cognitive decline due to Alzheimer's disease" by Joseph Giorgio, Susan M.
Landau, William J.
Jagust, Peter Tino and Zoe Kourtzi for the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative, 26 January 2020, NeuroImage: Clinical .

DOI: 10.
1016/ j.
nicl.
2020.
102199