Erratum: Impact of Beta-Amyloid-Specific Florbetaben PET Imaging on Confidence in Early Diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease

Background: Early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) may be corroborated by imaging of beta-amyloid plaques using positron emission tomography (PET). Here, we performed an add-on questionnaire study to evaluate the relevance of florbetaben imaging (BAY 949172) in diagnosis and consecutive management of probable AD patients. Methods: AD patients with a clinical diagnosis in accordance with the NINCDS-ADRDA criteria or controls were imaged using florbetaben. Referring physicians were asked on a voluntary basis about their confidence in initial diagnosis, significance of PET imaging results, and their anticipated consequences for future patient care. Results: 121 questionnaires for probable AD patients and 80 questionnaires for controls were evaluated. In 18% of patients who had initially received the diagnosis of probable AD, PET scans were rated negative, whereas in controls 18% of scans were positive. An increase in confidence in the initial diagnosis was frequently reported (80%). Imaging results had a significant impact on the intended patient care, as judged by the referring physicians; this was most prominent in those patients with a contradicting scan and/or a low confidence in the initial diagnosis. Conclusion: Florbetaben amyloid imaging increases the overall confidence in diagnosis of AD and may frequently influence clinical decisions and patient management.

背景：阿尔茨海默病（Alzheimer’s Disease, AD）的早期诊断可通过正电子发射断层扫描（Positron Emission Tomography, PET）显像检测β淀粉样蛋白斑块（beta-amyloid plaques）予以佐证。本研究开展一项附加问卷调查研究，以评估氟贝他班（florbetaben，代号BAY 949172）显像在拟诊AD患者的诊断及后续诊疗管理中的应用价值。方法：对符合NINCDS-ADRDA标准临床诊断的AD患者及对照组受试者行氟贝他班显像。邀请接诊医师自愿填写问卷，问卷内容涵盖其对初始诊断的置信度、PET显像结果的临床意义，以及对患者未来诊疗的预期调整方案。结果：共评估121份拟诊AD患者问卷与80份对照组受试者问卷。在初始被拟诊为AD的患者中，18%的PET显像结果为阴性；而对照组中18%的显像结果为阳性。约80%的接诊医师报告其初始诊断置信度有所提升。接诊医师判断，显像结果对预设的患者诊疗方案具有显著影响，该影响在显像结果与初始诊断相悖、或初始诊断置信度较低的患者群体中最为突出。结论：氟贝他班淀粉样蛋白显像可提升AD诊断的整体置信度，并可在多数情况下影响临床决策与患者诊疗管理。