The study, an analysis of data from multiple small studies, appears in the January 8, 2003 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Known as a meta-analysis, the study applied sophisticated statistical methods to data from 29 trials that involved the treatment of Alzheimers disease (AD) with cholinesterase inhibitors (ChIs).
People with AD can suffer cognitive, behavioral or functional difficulties. ChIs have been previously shown to effectively treat cognitive difficulties such as memory loss, disorientation and loss of language skills, said Kristine Yaffe, MD, Chief of Geriatric Psychiatry at the SFVAMC and UCSF assistant professor of psychiatry, neurology and epidemiology and biostatistics.
Until now, the jury has been out on whether these drugs really worked for behavioral and functional symptoms, said Yaffe, senior author of the JAMA article.
The current analysis revealed that patients treated with ChIs scored slightly higher on standard tests used to assess behavioral and functional status in patients with mild to moderate AD. These kinds of small, statistically significant increases in scores often translate into large impacts on behavior-related health problems, Yaffe said.
Approximately 4 million Americans have Alzheimers disease, a progressive disorder that leads to varying degrees of dementia and for which there is currently no cure. The deterioration of the brain characteristic of Alzheimers disease most often results in cognitive difficulties, such as memory loss.
About half the people suffering from the disease experience behavioral problems that can include changes in their personality, agitation, anxiety, delusio
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Contact: Camille Mojica Rey
cmrey@pubaff.ucsf.edu
415-476-8429
University of California - San Francisco
7-Jan-2003