What Is Lewy Body?
8. Diagnosis
No specific laboratory procedure exists to detect Lewy bodies in the brain. When motor symptoms or dementia are present, a doctor will usually run tests to eliminate other causes. These tests include a chemistry panel and complete blood count. In addition, levels of thyroid hormones and vitamin B-12 are analyzed, and the patient is evaluated for other diseases such as syphilis and Lyme disease.
Doctors cannot see Lewy bodies in an image from a CT scan or MRI of the brain, but other visible features help them make a diagnosis. For example, brain shrinkage is indicative of both LBD and Alzheimer’s disease. Imaging can also rule out other problems, including tumors, strokes, hydrocephalus, and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
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