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| Detection method | Principle | Advantage | Disadvantage |
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| MMSE | The most common scale of intelligence impairment at present. Illiteracy ≤ 17 points, primary school degree ≤ 20 points, middle school degree ≤ 22 points, college degree ≤ 23 points, indicates the impairment of cognitive function. | Low cost, concise content, less time for measurement, and easy to be accepted by the elderly | Only screening the patients with moderate-to-severe symptoms |
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| Structural imaging: head CT (thin scan) and MRI (coronal) scanning | Diagnostic imaging techniques show significant atrophy of the cerebral cortex, especially in the hippocampus and medial temporal lobe, supporting the clinical diagnosis of AD. | Used to exclude other underlying diseases and to identify specific imaging findings of AD | Convenience not as good as MMSE, expensive cost, hospital equipment support, low penetration rate |
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| 18FDG-PET | It shows the reduction of glucose metabolism in the dome and upper/posterior temporal region, posterior cingulate cortex, and anterior cranial lobe, revealing specific abnormal changes in AD. In the late period of AD, the frontal lobe metabolism was reduced. | Improving the reliability of dementia diagnosis and being suitable for the differential diagnosis of AD and other dementia | Convenience not as good as MMSE, expensive cost, specific equipment support needed, penetration rate |
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| EEG | The EEG of AD is characterized by a decrease in alpha wave, an increase in theta wave, and a decrease in the average frequency. | Used for the differential diagnosis of AD, providing early evidence of prion disease or other brain diseases | 33% of patients with early AD are normal without change in EEG and low penetration rate |
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| Biological markers | Dynamically observing the progression of the disease by using proteins or miRNAs in body fluids such as peripheral blood, cerebrospinal fluid, and urine biology as markers to increase the specificity of the diagnosis. | Noninvasive, simple and inexpensive, and of low price | Low repeatability, problems with accuracy and specificity, lack of standards |
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