Devanand, D. P., Mintzer, Jacobo, Schultz, Susan K., Andrews, Howard F., Sultzer, David L., de la Pena, Danilo, Gupta, Sanjay, Colon, Sylvia, Schimming, Corbett, Pelton, Gregory H., Levin, Bruce

Background: Among patients with Alzheimer’s disease who have had a response to antipsychotic medication for psychosis or agitation-aggression, the risk of a recurrence of symptoms after discontinuation of the medication has not been established.; Methods: Patients with Alzheimer’s disease and psychosis or agitation-aggression received open-label treatment with risperidone for 16 weeks. Those who had a […]

Devanand, D. P., Mintzer, Jacobo, Schultz, Susan, Sultzer, David, de la Pena, Danilo, Gupta, Sanjay, Colon, Sylvia, Schimming, Corbett, Pelton, Gregory H., Andrews, Howard, Levin, Bruce

Objectives: : Research studies on the effects of discontinuing antipsychotic medications in patients with dementia have not identified specific target symptoms or response to antipsychotics prior to discontinuation. The Antipsychotic Discontinuation in Alzheimer Disease (ADAD) trial addresses these issues in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter risperidone treatment and discontinuation trial. In Phase A, AD patients […]

De Deyn, Peter Paul, Eriksson, Hans, Svensson, Hanna

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the safety and tolerability of extended-release quetiapine fumarate (quetiapine XR) compared with quetiapine immediate-release (quetiapine IR) in older patients with Alzheimer’s disease with symptoms of psychosis and/or agitation.; Methods: This was a 6-week, double-blind, double-dummy, randomised study. Of the 109 patients screened, 100 were randomised to […]

Culo, Sandi, Mulsant, Benoit H., Rosen, Jules, Mazumdar, Sati, Blakesley, Richard E., Houck, Patricia R., Pollock, Bruce G.

Sensitivity to psychotropic medications presents a therapeutic challenge when treating neuropsychiatric symptoms in patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). We compared under randomized, double-blinded conditions the tolerability and efficacy of citalopram and risperidone in the treatment of behavioral and psychotic symptoms in patients with DLB and Alzheimer disease (AD). Thirty-one participants with DLB and […]

Devanand, D. P., Pelton, Gregory H., Cunqueiro, Karine, Sackeim, Harold A., Marder, Karen

Objective: In patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) with psychosis or agitation that respond to haloperidol treatment, to evaluate the risk of relapse following discontinuation.; Methods: In outpatients with AD with symptoms of psychosis or agitation, responders to 20 weeks of haloperidol (0.5-5 mg daily) were randomized to a 24-week, double-blind pilot trial of discontinuation on placebo […]

Dombrovski, Alexandre Y., Mulsant, Benoit H., Ferrell, Robert E., Lotrich, Francis E., Rosen, Jules I., Wallace, Meredith, Houck, Patricia R., Mazumdar, Sati, Pollock, Bruce G.

The risk/benefit ratio of pharmacotherapy for behavioral symptoms of dementia is questionable: second-generation antipsychotics are poorly tolerated, and the efficacy of alternative treatments, for example, selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), is uncertain. Biomarkers of treatment response may improve this risk/benefit ratio. The length polymorphism of the serotonin transporter promoter gene (5-HTTLPR/SLC6A4) may moderate tolerability of SSRIs […]

Schmidt, Reinhold, Baumhackl, Ulf, Berek, Klaus, Brücke, Thomas, Kapeller, Peter, Lechner, Anita, Rainer, Michael, Stögerer, Eva-Maria

We conducted an open, 16-week study on the efficacy of memantine on behavioral disturbances and psychotic symptoms in moderate to moderately severe Alzheimer s disease in daily routine. Fifty-three patients of 20 outpatient centers in Austria were recruited. The Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI) was defined as main outcome measure. After 16 weeks the total NPI score […]

MORETTI, Francesca, DE RONCHI, Diana, BERNABEI, Virginia, MARCHETTI, Lucia, FERRARI, Barbara, FORLANI, Claudia, NEGRETTI, Francesca, SACCHETTI, Cleta, ATTI, Anna Rita

Background: To evaluate the effects of pet therapy on cognitive function, mood and perceived quality of life on elderly inpatients (mean age 84.7 years; 95.2% women) affected by dementia, depression and psychosis.; Methods: Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and 15-items Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) were administered to 10 patients (pet group) and 11 controls (control group) […]

Barak, Yoram, Plopski, Igor, Tadger, Shelly, Paleacu, Diana

Background: Antipsychotics are frequently used to treat psychosis, aggression and agitation in patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but safety warnings abound. Escitalopram was investigated since citalopram has demonstrated some effectiveness in AD. We compared escitalopram and risperidone for psychotic symptoms and agitation associated with AD.; Methods: Inpatients with AD, who had been hospitalized because of […]