Down syndrome: Distribution of brain amyloid in mild cognitive impairment

INTRODUCTION: Down syndrome (DS) is associated with a higher risk of dementia. We hypothesize that amyloid beta (Aβ) in specific brain regions differentiates mild cognitive impairment in DS (MCI‐DS) and test these hypotheses using cross‐sectional and longitudinal data. METHODS: 18F‐AV‐45 (florbetapir) positron emission tomography (PET) data were collected to analyze amyloid burden in 58 participants clinically classified as cognitively stable (CS) or MCI‐DS and 12 longitudinal CS participants. RESULTS: The study confirmed our hypotheses of increased amyloid in inferior parietal, lateral occipital, and superior frontal regions as the main effects differentiating MCI‐DS from the CS groups. The largest annualized amyloid increases in longitudinal CS data were in the rostral middle frontal, superior frontal, superior/middle temporal, and posterior cingulate cortices. DISCUSSION: This study helps us to understand amyloid in the MCI‐DS transitional state between cognitively stable aging and frank dementia in DS. The spatial distribution of Aβ may be a reliable indicator of MCI‐DS in DS.