Yorkshire health collaborative brings dementia test to the region

Leeds Teaching Hospitals PETCT Team: advanced radiographer practitioner Katrina Pitts, Dr Chirag Patel, team leader Karen Marshall, consultant radiologist Dr Andrew Scarsbrook, Dr Fahmid Chowdhury and radiographer assistant Cara Bolland.

Two of Yorkshire’s healthcare providers have joined forces to bring highly accurate dementia testing to the region.  The venture between Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust focuses on the use of FDG PET scans in difficult to diagnose patients with suspected dementia.

The PETCT scans of the brain can sensitively identify metabolic defects in patients with conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, when conventional imaging tests like CT and MRI scans are negative.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals consultant radiologist and clinical lead for nuclear medicine Dr Fahmid Chowdhury led the development of the service.  He said: “We are delighted that we have been able to work collaboratively with dementia specialists from around the region, including colleagues from Bradford, Harrogate and Leeds.

“Our data shows that these scans are instrumental in providing timely and accurate diagnosis in patients presenting with decline in memory or other brain function, who did not have a clear diagnosis on initial expert assessment and routine imaging tests.”

See the full report on page 32 of the July 2016 issue of RAD Magazine.