Mild Cognitive Impairment — The Clinicopathological Challenge

To assess clinical and pathological outcomes of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), investigators examined data from 1337 participants from 11 longitudinal studies of aging who came to autopsy, with blinded neuropathology assessment, a mean of 7.6 years after clinical diagnosis (last clinical assessment <2 years before death). Of these patients, 463 had normal assessments at baseline and death (No Impairment), 122 had MCI at baseline and normal cognition at death (MCI Reverters), 343 had MCI at both baseline and death (Stable MCI), and 409 converted from MCI at baseline to dementia at death (Dementia).

MCI Reverters were less likely to have moderate arteriolosclerosis than the stable MCI group and had less neurofibrillary tangle (NFT) pathology…