Using PET scans to discover early signs of Alzheimer's

The June 27, 2006 edition of of the Wall Street Journal had an article on page D2 by Laura Johannes about using PET scans to get an early diagnosis of AD. It says, "Neurologists say PET is an excellent tool for distinguishing between Alzheimer's and frontotemporal dementia, which can look similar in the early stages but progress differently."

Doctors are less enthusiastic about using PET scans to diagnose people who only have mild memory problems. It sounds like it gives a lot of false positives. A study investigating its usefulness as a diagnostic tool is under way.