Diagnosis
Typically, cerebral atrophy is seen with brain imaging tests. Some of these tests include:
- Computerized tomography (CT)
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
- Positron emission tomography (PET)
- Single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT) scans
Your medical team might suggest that you have a brain CT or MRI if you experience symptoms such as weakness, numbness, vision, loss, or personality changes. In general, PET and SPECT are often done for research purposes rather than in the clinical setting. These tests may observe generalized cerebral atrophy or areas of focal cerebral atrophy.
Sometimes when regions of atrophy are identified on a brain imaging examination, it can help in diagnosing the medical condition. For example:
- Alzheimer’s disease: The hippocampus, which is used to develop new memories, and the temporoparietal lobes are affected by atrophy in most patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
- Frontotemporal dementia: The frontal and temporal lobes are the most seriously affected by atrophy.
- Lewy body dementia: The midbrain, hypothalamus, and substantia innominata are the regions with the most atrophy in this condition.
- Parkinson’s disease: The substantia nigra and midbrain may shrink at late stages.
- Stroke: Regions of the brain that have been damaged by bleeding or loss of blood supply may undergo atrophy, creating small “holes” in the brain.
Some types of atrophy, which include vascular dementia, CTE, MS, and atrophy due to encephalitis or AIDS may lead to cerebral atrophy in multiple areas of the brain.