Memantine plus donepezil improves symptoms in Alzheimer’s disease
Memantine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist, produces better outcomes than placebo — when taken together with cholinesterase inhibitor donepezil — in patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease, new research has shown.
Researchers randomised 404 patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s
disease already receiving treatment with donepezil to memantine (starting
dose 5mg per day increased by 5mg per week to 20mg per day) or placebo
for 28 weeks, in a double-blind trial.
Patients treated with memantine maintained cognitive function, whereas
treatment with placebo was associated with cognitive decline. Activities
of daily living declined by 2 points in the memantine group, compared
with a 3.4 point decline in the placebo group.
Memantine was found to be well tolerated, with fewer patients in the
memantine group discontinuing treatment than in the placebo group.
The authors conclude that these results, together with previous studies,
suggest that memantine represents a new approach for the treatment of
patients with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease (JAMA 2004;291:317).
The study was funded by Forest Laboratories. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal