This study compared amyloid load in dementia with lewey bodies [DLB], a very malignant illness, with parkinson's disease w/ dementia [PDD] and normal brains.


J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2008;79:1331-1338 doi:10.1136/jnnp.2007.127878

• Research paper

Amyloid load in Parkinson’s disease dementia and Lewy body dementia measured with [11C]PIB positron emission tomography

1. P Edison1,
2. C C Rowe2,
3. J O Rinne3,
4. S Ng2,
5. I Ahmed1,
6. N Kemppainen3,
7. V L Villemagne2,
8. G O’Keefe2,
9. K Någren3,
10. K R Chaudhury4,
11. C L Masters2,
12. D J Brooks1,5

Results: The DLB cohort showed a significant increase in mean brain [11C]PIB uptake and individually 11 of the 13 subjects with DLB had a significantly increased amyloid load. In contrast, mean [11C]PIB uptake was normal for the PDD group although two of 12 patients with PDD individually showed a raised amyloid load. Where significant increases in [11C]PIB uptake were found, it was increased in cortical association areas, cingulate and striatum. None of the subjects with PD showed significantly raised cortical [11C]PIB uptake.


Conclusion: This study suggests that amyloid load is significantly raised in over 80% of subjects with DLB, while amyloid pathology is infrequent in PDD. These in vivo PET findings suggest that the presence of amyloid in DLB could contribute to the rapid progression of dementia in this condition and that anti-amyloid strategies may be relevant.

http://jnnp.bmj.com/content/79/12/1331.abstract