Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28341686›Full record

Observational studyBMJ open2017

Incidental findings on brain MRI of cognitively normal first-degree descendants of patients with Alzheimer's disease: a cross-sectional analysis from the ALFA (Alzheimer and Families) project.

Anna Brugulat-Serrat, Santiago Rojas, Nuria Bargalló, Gerardo Conesa, Carolina Minguillón, Karine Fauria, Nina Gramunt, José Luis Molinuevo, Juan Domingo Gispert

Registry-linked trialOpen access · goldAbstract readObservational Study
In one paragraph

Observational study in BMJ open, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02198586 (Apoe Impact Study on Brain Structure and Function, in a Population 45 to 75 Years Old), which is not on this map. Cited by 22 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
22citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
2.9field-weighted citation impact, top 9% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT02198586 completednot on this map

Apoe Impact Study on Brain Structure and Function, in a Population 45 to 75 Years Old

TypeobservationalSponsorBarcelonabeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall FoundationRan2014 to 2015Enrolled575ConditionsAlzheimer's Disease
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

22 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  7. Neuroimaging Methods for MRI Analysis in CSF Biomarkers Studies.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024
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  12. Prevalence of incidental brain MRI findings of clinical relevance in a diverse Hispanic/Latino population.Journal of neuroimaging : official journal of the American Society of Neuroimaging · 2021
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  18. Vis-à-vis: a focus on genetic features of cerebral cavernous malformations and brain arteriovenous malformations pathogenesis.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2019
    Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Anna Brugulat-SerratBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
Santiago RojasBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
Nuria BargallóMagnetic Resonance Imaging Core Facility, Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.
Gerardo ConesaServicio de Neurocirugía, Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, Spain.
Carolina MinguillónBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
Karine FauriaBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
Nina GramuntBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
José Luis MolinuevoBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
Juan Domingo GispertBarcelonaβeta Brain Research Center, Pasqual Maragall Foundation, Barcelona, Spain.
Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Center · ESPasqual Maragall Foundation · ESConsorci Institut D'Investigacions Biomediques August Pi I Sunyer · ESHospital Del Mar · ES

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesTo describe the prevalence of brain MRI incidental findings (IF) in a cohort of cognitively normal first-degree descendants of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD).

designCross-sectional observational study.

settingAll scans were obtained with a 3.0 T scanner. Scans were evaluated by a single neuroradiologist and IF recorded and categorised. The presence of white matter hyperintensities (WMH) was determined with the Fazekas scale and reported as relevant if ≥2.

participants575 participants (45-75 years) underwent high-resolution structural brain MRI. Participants were cognitively normal and scored over the respective cut-off values in all the following neuropsychological tests: Mini-Mental State Examination (≥26), Memory Impairment Screen (≥6), Time Orientation Subtest of the Barcelona Test II (≥68), verbal semantic fluency (naming animals ≥12). Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) had to be 0.

results155 participants (27.0%) presented with at least one IF. Relevant WMH were present in 7.8% of the participants, and vascular abnormalities, cyst and brain volume loss in 10.7%, 3.1% and 6.9% of the study volunteers, respectively. Neoplastic brain findings were found in 2.4% of participants and within these, meningiomas were the most common (1.7%) and more frequently found in women. A positive correlation between increasing age and the presence of IF was found. Additionally, brain atrophy greater than that expected by age was significantly more prevalent in participants without a parental history of AD.

conclusionsBrain MRIs of healthy middle-aged participants show a relatively high prevalence of IF even when study participants have been screened for subtle cognitive alterations. Most of our participants are first-degree descendants of patients with AD, and therefore these results are of special relevance for novel imaging studies in the context of AD prevention in cognitively healthy middle-aged participants. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02198586.

Indexed as

FamilyIncidental FindingsAgedAlzheimer DiseaseBrainCognitionCohort StudiesCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansImage Processing, Computer-AssistedMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMiddle AgedNeuropsychological TestsAlzheimer's diseasecerebral MRIhealthyincidental findinglate middle-agedprevention

Identifiers

PMID28341686
PMCPMC5372150
OpenAlexW2603528722

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.