Internal Jugular Vein Velocity and Spontaneous Echo Contrast Correlate with Alzheimer's Disease and Cognitive Function.

BACKGROUND Many issues persist in the today's Alzheimer's disease (AD) screening and the breakthrough method is desired. OBJECTIVE We aim to validate the association between venous reflux and AD, and to develop a new method for AD screening. METHODS We examined spontaneous echo contrast, area, diameter, retrograde velocity, and anterograde velocity of the bilateral cervical internal jugular vein (IJV) using carotid ultrasonography. RESULTS A total of 112 patients participated in this study, with 26 diagnosed as AD. The proportion of both or either IJV spontaneous echo contrast (+) occupied 25 of total 26 AD patients, which showed 96.2%of sensitivity and 98.5%negative predictive value. The IJV velocities also showed significant correlation with AD diagnosis, although the IJV area or diameter did not. CONCLUSION Our results indicate that the validation of the spontaneous echo contrast or velocities of the IJV are convenient AD diagnosis screening methods and that the venous reflux disturbance correlates with AD development.