Report of an IPA Special Meeting Work Group* Under the Cosponsorship of Alzheimer’s Disease International, the European Federation of Neurological Societies, the World Health Organization, and the World Psychiatric Association
ABSTRACT. Current knowledge with respect to the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is reviewed. There is agreement that AD is a characteristic clinicopathologic entity that is amenable to diagnosis. The diagnosis of AD should no longer be considered one of exclusion. Rather, the diagnostic process is one of recognition of the characteristic features of AD and of conditions that can have an impact on presentation or mimic aspects of the clinicopathologic picture. The present availability of improved prognosis, management, and treatment strategies makes the proper,
and state-of-the-art, diagnosis of AD a clinical imperative in all medical settings.
Concurrently, information regarding the relevance and applicability of current diagnostic
procedures in diverse cultural settings must continue to accrue.
*From the Aging and Dementia Research Center, New York University
Medical Center, New York, New York (B. Reisberg, MD); Withington Hospital, University of
Manchester, Department of Psychiatry, West Didsbury, Manchester, UK (A. Burns, MD, FRCP,
FRCPsych); Academic Department of Psychogeriatrics, Prince Henry Hospital, Little Bay, New
South Wales, Australia (H. Brodaty, MD, FRACP, FRANZCP); Department of Psychiatry, Saint
Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA (R. Eastwood, MD, FRCP[c], FRCPsych); Dementia
Research Group, The National Hospital at Queen Square, London, UK (M. Rossor, MD, FRCP);
Départment de Psychiatrie, Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genčve, Geneva, Switzerland (N.
Sartorius, MD, PhD, FRCPsych); and Karolinska Institute, Department of Clinical
Neuroscience and Family Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Huddinge University
Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden (B. Winblad, MD, PhD) in association with the Work Group
Participants.(1)
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