Brain Scans Show Different Patterns in Two Memory Loss Diseases

Two brain diseases, Alzheimer's and CAA, both involve a sticky protein called amyloid. But they affect the brain differently. Scientists used special scans to see these differences. They looked at 30 people with Alzheimer's and 20 with CAA. They used two types of brain scans. One scan showed where amyloid builds up. The other scan showed brain activity. The scans showed more amyloid in the cerebellum of CAA patients. This is the part of the brain that helps with balance and coordination. In Alzheimer's patients, amyloid was mostly in the cortex. This is the outer part of the brain that helps with thinking and memory.The scans also showed less brain activity in Alzheimer's patients. This was especially true in areas of the brain used for memory and learning. In CAA patients, brain activity was more normal. But they still had problems with memory and thinking. These findings could help doctors tell the difference between Alzheimer's and CAA. This is important because the two diseases need different treatments.