NeuroQuant
NeuroQuant is software that analyzes a brain MRI to improve the early detection and treatment of dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy. NeuroQuant precisely measures brain atrophy (shrinkage) by measuring the hippocampus and other brain structures that usually shrink when a patient has certain conditions affecting the brain. NeuroQuant can help your doctor diagnose and follow the progression of certain diseases.
NeuroQuant compares an MRI of a patient’s brain to a database, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, of people of the same age, sex and skull size who have healthy brains. NeuroQuant can provide an early warning of Alzheimer’s disease for patients who have mild cognitive impairment. Research has shown a correlation between the size of the hippocampus and the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Patients who have a smaller hippocampus are four times more likely to progress to Alzheimer’s disease in a few years than patients whose hippocampus is a normal size. The hippocampus in a healthy patient shrinks about 1 percent per year compared to about 5 percent per year in a person with Alzheimer’s disease.
NeuroQuant can monitor changes in brain atrophy over time to determine if and how quickly a disease is progressing. The study also may help to measure the effect of treatment and identify patients most likely to benefit from aggressive intervention.
Although normal-sized brain structures can’t rule out dementia, high-functioning patients concerned about mild but increasing memory loss may be reassured by NeuroQuant results in the normal range.
For more information or to schedule a study, please call 310-423-8000.
Below: Healthy brain on the left with normal-sized hippocampus; shrunken hippocampus suggesting Alzheimer’s disease on right
