Florbetapir (F18‐AV‐45) PET to assess amyloid burden in Alzheimer's disease dementia, mild cognitive impairment, and normal aging

Objective To evaluate the performance characteristics of florbetapir F18 positron emission tomography (PET) in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and healthy control subjects (HCs). Methods Florbetapir PET was acquired in 184 subjects (45 AD patients, 60 MCI patients, and 79 HCs) within a multicenter phase 2 study. Amyloid burden was assessed visually and quantitatively, and was classified as positive or negative. Results Florbetapir PET was rated visually amyloid positive in 76% of AD patients, 38% of MCI patients, and 14% of HCs. Eighty-four percent of AD patients, 45% of MCI patients, and 23% of HCs were classified as amyloid positive using a quantitative threshold. Amyloid positivity and mean cortical amyloid burden were associated with age and apolipoprotein E e4 carrier status. Conclusions: The data are consistent with expected rates of amyloid positivity among individuals with clinical diagnoses of AD and MCI, and indicate the potential value of florbetapir F18 PET as an adjunct to clinical diagnosis.