Beta-Amyloid Scans for Alzheimer’s
A Beta-Amyloid PET/CT scan will confirm deposits of Beta-Amyloid Plaque on the brain. This can help your neurologist determine whether or not you qualify for the new FDA approved treatment.
Positive Scan
Negative Scan
The Power of Knowing
Diagnosing Alzheimer’s is complex. With no single test currently available, diagnosis is based on an individual’s history, physical examination, and cognitive testing. Beta-Amyloid PET/CT imaging represents a potential major advance in the assessment of those with cognitive impairment. The scan visualizes plaques present in the brain, which are prime suspects in damaging and killing nerve cells in Alzheimer’s. Before Beta-Amyloid PET/CT, these plaques could only be detected by examining the brain at autopsy.
Beta-Amyloid PET/CT imaging uses a class of radiopharmaceuticals that detect levels of beta-amyloid in the human brain. Measurements of cerebral beta-amyloid is clinically useful in the work up and management of patients with cognitive impairment who are being evaluated for possible Alzheimer’s disease or other causes of cognitive decline.
What to Expect
There are no prior preparations for this scan. We will administer a simple and quick intravenous injection into a vein in your arm. This will bind to beta-amyloid proteins if they are present. There are no side effects to the injection and you will not feel any different. You will relax in a private room for about 45 minutes after the injection of the radioactive tracer. The PET/CT scan will be 20 minutes. The scanner is quiet and open on both ends for patient comfort. We will have results to your physician within 24 to 48 hours.
Appropriate Candidates
According to the Beta-Amyloid Imaging Taskforce, created by the Alzheimer’s Association and SNMMI, appropriate candidates for beta-amyloid PET/CT imaging include:
- Those who complain of persistent or progressive unexplained memory problems or confusion and who demonstrate impairments using standard tests of cognition and memory.
- Individuals meeting tests for possible Alzheimer’s, but who are unusual in their clinical presentation.
- Individuals with progressive dementia and atypically early age of onset (before age 65).
