Surface-based morphometric analysis of hippocampal subfields in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer´s disease

The hippocampus is widely studied with neuroimaging techniques given its importance in learning and memory and its potential as a biomarker for Alzheimer´s disease (AD). Its complex folding anatomy often presents analytical challenges. In particular, the critical subfield information is typically not addressed by the existing hippocampal shape studies. To bridge this gap, we present a computational framework for surface-based morphometric analysis of hippocampal subfields. The major strengths of this framework are as follows: (a) it performs detailed hippocampal shape analysis, (b) it embraces, rather than ignores, the important hippocampal subfield information, and (c) it analyzes regular magnetic resonance imaging scans and is applicable to large scale studies. We demonstrate its effectiveness by applying it to the identification of regional hippocampal subfield atrophy patterns associated with mild cognitive impairment and AD.