Magnetic resonance imaging study cannot individually distinguish individuals with mild cognitive impairment, mild Alzheimer's disease, and normal aging

Objective: To evaluate the volumetric and spectroscopy aspects of hippocampus in patients with mild Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: A series of patients older than 65 years and with memory deficit were studied. Results: The evocation of words test presented a significant reduction in the number of words recalled by the patients with MCI and mild AD as compared with the control group. Bilateral reduction of the hippocampus volume in the AD group was observed when compared to the control group. There were no statistical differences in the values of NAA/Cr, mI/Cr, Cho/Cr and mI/NAA between the groups. Conclusions: Magnetic resonance imaging study failed to individually distinguish patients with MCI, mild AD and normal aging. However, patients with mild AD presented loss of asymmetry between the right and left hippocampus, and a reduction in hippocampus volume.