Patients underwent neuroimaging assessments using either 1.5T MRI scanner (Philips Ingenia) or 3T Siemens Prisma Fit (Siemens, Erlangen, Germany). T1-weighted and FLAIR scans were used for visual rating of scans. Subject FLAIR scans were visually rated based on the modified Fazekas scale for white matter hyperintensity (WMH) severity [27 ]. Patients were classified as having confluent WMH and non-confluent WMH based on the Staals criteria [28 (link)]: a WMH rating of 3 in either periventricular and/or a rating of 2 or 3 in deep white matter regions in either hemisphere were assigned as confluent. Raters doing the MRI visual ratings were blinded to diagnosis and clinical information.
The neurodegeneration (N) profile was assigned based on the medial temporal lobe atrophy (MTA) scores based on the Schelten’s scale [29 (link)].