# Classification of the stages of Alzheimer’s disease based on three-dimensional lightweight neural networks

## TL;DR

This study uses 3D lightweight neural networks to classify Alzheimer's disease stages with high accuracy using brain MRI data.

## Contribution

A novel 3D lightweight neural network approach for Alzheimer's stage classification with over 96% accuracy is proposed.

## Key findings

- Three-stage classification (cognitively normal, mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s disease) achieved over 96% accuracy.
- Segmented standardized gray matter images provided best results for cognitively normal classification.
- White matter image variations became significant as Alzheimer’s progressed.

## Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease that seriously threatens the life and health of the elderly. This study used three-dimensional lightweight neural networks to classify the stages of Alzheimer’s disease and explore the relationship between the stages and the variations of brain tissue. The study used CAT12 to preprocess magnetic resonance images of the brain and got three kinds of preprocessed images: standardized images, segmented standardized gray matter images, and segmented standardized white matter images. The three kinds of images were used to train four kinds of three-dimensional lightweight neural networks respectively, and the evaluation metrics of the neural networks are calculated. The accuracies of the neural networks for classifying the stages of Alzheimer’s disease (cognitively normal, mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s disease) in the study are above 96%, and the precisions and recalls of classifying the three stages are above 94%. The study found that for the classification of cognitively normal, the best classification results can be obtained by training with the segmented standardized gray matter images, and for mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease, the best classification results can be obtained by training with the standardized images. The study analyzed that in the process of cognitively normal to mild cognitive impairment, variations in the segmented standardized gray matter images are more obvious at the beginning, while variations in the segmented standardized white matter images are not obvious. As the disease progresses, variations in the segmented standardized white matter images tend to become more significant, and variations in the segmented standardized gray matter images and white matter images are both significant in the development of Alzheimer’s disease.