Detecting Pathological Changes in the Brain Due to Alzheimer Disease Using Numerical Microwave Signal Analysis

Abstract

Microwave techniques are being investigated to detect various biological conditions such as cancer, stroke, and neurodegenerative disorder due to ease of accessibility and lower cost. This paper presents initial results on the use of microwave signal analysis for the detection of Plaque and tangles changes in the brain caused by Alzheimer's disease. Various brain phantoms are created using a commercial microwave design suite to mimic different stages of Alzheimer especially pathological changes caused by beta-amyloid plaques and tau tangles in the brain. These phantoms are penetrated with an array of six monopole directional antennas and the reflected signals are stored and analysed. Numerical signal analysis for different stages of Alzheimer disease shows that there are significant variations due to Plaque and tangles in the brain. These preliminary results also show that microwave imaging can be used for the detection of Alzheimer disease at initial stages.