Brain Autopsy 

Information gained from a brain autopsy can be extremely important to both family members and researchers.

While researchers have made significant progress in diagnosing Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia in living patients, a definitive diagnosis is still only possible after a brain autopsy is performed at the time of death.  A definitive diagnosis can also help families better understand genetic risk factors associated with Alzheimer’s and other diseases such as Dementia with Lewy bodies or Frontotemporal dementia.

This information allows researchers to gain valuable insights into the course of a disease, and examine how different treatments may have affected the brain’s structure.

The MADRC offers brain autopsy services at no cost to all volunteers enrolled in our U-M Memory & Aging Project. While MADRC researchers urge all study participants to consider brain autopsy, they recognize that this is a deeply personal decision and it can be very difficult for families if their loved one’s wishes are not known. For more information on brain autopsy, call 734-936-8764.

If you have a loved one enrolled in our U -M Memory and Aging Project and need to make arrangements for autopsy services, please contact the MADRC Brain Bank Coordinator at 734-936-6267 and ask for pager number 9198. 

All arrangements need to be made prior to the death of a loved one.