Herrmann, Nathan, Black, Sandra E., Chow, Tiffany, Cappell, Jaclyn, Tang-Wai, David F., Lanctôt, Krista L.

Objectives: The purposes of this study were first, to evaluate the effectiveness of citalopram in treating behavioral disturbances in frontotemporal dementia (FTD) subjects and second, to determine whether an association exists between serotonergic function, as determined by a neuroendocrine challenge, and treatment response.; Design: Single-dose citalopram (30 mg per os) challenge followed by a 6-week […]

Drye, Lea T., Martin, Barbara K., Frangakis, Constantine E., Meinert, Curtis L., Mintzer, Jacobo E., Munro, Cynthia A., Porsteinsson, Anton P., Rabins, Peter V., Rosenberg, Paul B., Schneider, Lon S., Weintraub, Daniel, Lyketsos, Constantine G.

Objective: To determine if the effect of sertraline in the depression in Alzheimer’s disease study – 2 (DIADS-2) differed in subgroups of patients defined by baseline depression criteria.; Methods: DIADS-2 was a randomized, parallel, placebo-controlled, multicenter trial designed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of sertraline (target dose of 100 mg/day) for the treatment of depression […]

Rosenberg, Paul B., Drye, Lea T., Martin, Barbara K., Frangakis, Constantine, Mintzer, Jacobo E., Weintraub, Daniel, Porsteinsson, Anton P., Schneider, Lon S., Rabins, Peter V., Munro, Cynthia A., Meinert, Curtis L., Lyketsos, Constantine G.

Objective: Depression is common in Alzheimer disease (AD), and antidepressants are commonly used for its treatment, however, evidence for antidepressant efficacy in this population is lacking. The authors conducted a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled trial titled “Depression in Alzheimer’s Disease-2” to assess the efficacy and tolerability of sertraline for depression in AD.; Methods: One hundred thirty-one […]

Liu, Xuan, Zhang, Junjian, Sun, Dong, Fan, Yuanteng, Zhou, Hongbin, Fu, Binfang

Background: Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors improve cognition in patients with stroke and increase the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the rat hippocampus. However, the effects of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors on cognition and serum BDNF levels in patients with vascular dementia are largely unknown. We performed an open-label study to investigate the effects […]

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 […]

Porsteinsson, Anton P., Drye, Lea T., Pollock, Bruce G., Devanand, D. P., Frangakis, Constantine, Ismail, Zahinoor, Marano, Christopher, Meinert, Curtis L., Mintzer, Jacobo E., Munro, Cynthia A., Pelton, Gregory, Rabins, Peter V., Rosenberg, Paul B., Schneider, Lon S., Shade, David M., Weintraub, Daniel, Yesavage, Jerome, Lyketsos, Constantine G.

Importance: Agitation is common, persistent, and associated with adverse consequences for patients with Alzheimer disease. Pharmacological treatment options, including antipsychotics are not satisfactory.; Objective: The primary objective was to evaluate the efficacy of citalopram for agitation in patients with Alzheimer disease. Key secondary objectives examined effects of citalopram on function, caregiver distress, safety, cognitive safety, […]