State of the science on mild cognitive impairment (MCI)

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) represents a transitional stage between healthy aging and dementia, and affects 10-15% of the population over the age of 65. The failure of drug trials in Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatment has shifted researchers' focus toward delaying progression from MCI to dementia, which would reduce the prevalence and costs of dementia profoundly. Diagnostic criteria for MCI increasingly emphasize the need for positive biomarkers to detect preclinical AD. The phenomenology of MCI comprises lower quality-of-life, greater symptoms of depression, and avoidant coping strategies including withdrawal from social engagement. Neurobiological features of MCI are hypoperfusion and hypometabolism in…