A new way of training computers to interpret brain scan images may enable doctors to correctly diagnose different types of degenerative diseases at a much earlier stage.

Chris Taylor and his team at Manchester University's division of imaging science and biomedical engineering are working on analysis of three-dimensional images of the brain obtained from magnetic resonance scans.

The research, funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, uses a model-based approach.

Professor Taylor said: "The main features of the brain are captured in a computer model. When a new image is presented to the computer we fit the model to the data and record how much and in what way it differs from the 'average' brain.

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"The configuration of a brain can be expressed in terms of a relatively small number of parameters that record the extent to which each pattern of variation is present," Professor Taylor explained.

The values of the parameters give a description of brain shape and can be used to distinguish between normal variation and that due to disease.

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"If we can measure the pattern of loss of brain matter we could have a more specific indication of the type of disease and how the degeneration is progressing and thus be in a better position to manage the treatment of patients," Professor Taylor said.