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Pearls and Pitfalls of 18F-FDG PET/CT for Suspected Alzheimer's Disease in Patient with Down Syndrome
Akgün E, Minoshima S.. Molecular imaging and radionuclide therapy, 2026-06-23
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Dementia in individuals with Down syndrome (DS) is the leading cause of early-onset cognitive decline occurring before the age of 50. However, establishing an accurate diagnosis remains particularly challenging due to pre-existing intellectual disability, variability in baseline cognitive function, and the limited reliability of standard neuropsychological assessments. 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ( 18 F-FDG PET) plays a critical role in identifying underlying neurodegenerative processes and supporting the diagnosis. We present a case of DS with multiple known and unknown pathologies identified on brain 18 F-FDG PET and a confirmed diagnosis of early-onset mild Alzheimer's disease.
Key findings
- Dementia in individuals with Down syndrome (DS) is the leading cause of early-onset cognitive decline occurring before the age of 50.
- However, establishing an accurate diagnosis remains particularly challenging due to pre-existing intellectual disability, variability in baseline cognitive function, and the limited reliability of standard neuropsychological assessments. 18 F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ( 18 F-FDG PET) plays a critical role in identifying underlying neurodegenerative processes and supporting the diagnosis.
- We present a case of DS with multiple known and unknown pathologies identified on brain 18 F-FDG PET and a confirmed diagnosis of early-onset mild Alzheimer's disease.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 47/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record and multi-centre collaboration, so those were left out: it earned 27 of the 58 points we could judge it on, which is 47 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Molecular imaging and radionuclide therapy) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 42334274) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 27 / 58 | Scored on 11 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 27 of the 58 points we could judge it on is 47 out of 100. |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
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APA 7th
Akgün, E., & Minoshima, S. (2026). Pearls and Pitfalls of 18F-FDG PET/CT for Suspected Alzheimer's Disease in Patient with Down Syndrome. Molecular imaging and radionuclide therapy. https://doi.org/10.4274/mirt.galenos.2026.13285
Vancouver
Akgün E, Minoshima S. Pearls and Pitfalls of 18F-FDG PET/CT for Suspected Alzheimer's Disease in Patient with Down Syndrome. Molecular imaging and radionuclide therapy. 2026. doi:10.4274/mirt.galenos.2026.13285. PMID: 42334274.
BibTeX
@article{akgun2026-42334274,
author = {Akgün, E. and Minoshima, S.},
title = {{Pearls and Pitfalls of 18F-FDG PET/CT for Suspected Alzheimer's Disease in Patient with Down Syndrome}},
journal = {Molecular imaging and radionuclide therapy},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.4274/mirt.galenos.2026.13285},
pmid = {42334274},
url = {https://doi.org/10.4274/mirt.galenos.2026.13285}
}
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