Diagnosing Dementia

Diagnostic testing is at the heart of both the clinical care and research at the Penn Memory Center. Patients and research participants alike undergo various diagnostics such as PET scans, MRI scans, and cognitive tests. These tools help clinicians turn symptoms such as dementia into a diagnosis like Alzheimer’s disease. But what are these tests? And what can they actually tell us about aging? 

 

On Episode 4 of the Age of Aging, we examine the full diagnostic experience.  

 

Our first segment explores MRI and PET scans and what they tell us about the brain. Then, Dr. Lauren Massimo from the Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center introduces other dementia-causing diseases beyond Alzheimer’s. We then hear from one couple about their decisions to donate their brains after death to help further aging research. Finally, to end our first season, Dr. Massimo discusses the legacy of her late mentor, and a major figure in the world of aging research, Dr. Murray Grossman. 

 

Resources  

 

• Learn more about the studies currently enrolling at the Penn Memory Center 

• Visit the Penn FTD Center website 

• Read more about the Kung’s decision to donate their brains 

• More information on brain donation at PMC 

• Watch the Dr. Murray Grossman’s full memorial symposium 

 

Thank you to John Detre, MD, Lynn Cronomiz, Lauren Massimo, PhD, CRNP, FAAN, and Ed and Marcia Kung.   

 

The Age of Aging is a Penn Memory Center production hosted by Editorial Director Terrence Casey and Producer Jake Johnson, in partnership with the Penn FTD Center, the Penn Institute on Aging, and UPenn’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. Contributors include Nicolette Calcavecchia, Marie Ingegneri, Jason Karlawish, Cait Kearney, Emily Largent, Meg McCarthy, and Olivia Vozzella.