An experimental Alzheimer's treatment slowed memory loss by about one-third in people with mild Alzheimer's, offering hope that the drug can alter the course of the progressive disease.
Called solanezumab, the drug attaches to a protein called beta-amyloid that builds up and clumps together to form sticky plaques that riddle Alzheimer's patients' brains. The drug is designed to prevent those clumps from forming.
The benefit is small and studies have been inconsistent, says researcher Rachelle Doody, MD, head of Alzheimer's disease research at Baylor College of Medicine.
"But the study offers evidence that targeting beta-amyloid can benefit patients," she says. Larger studies in many more patients are needed before the drug will be available, though, she says. Read MoreCognitive Behavior Therapy to Teach 'New Ways' of Thinking Shows Promise
Read MoreExtreme agitation, aggressiveness, and psychosis are common among people with Alzheimer's disease -- especially in its later stages -- and they are among the symptoms most often associated with admission to nursing homes.
Antipsychotic drugs are often prescribed to treat these symptoms, but their use remains controversial.
Federal regulators recommend that patients take the drugs for no more than six months, but new research published online today in the New England Journal of Medicine questions the wisdom of abruptly stopping treatment.
People with Alzheimer's whose symptoms improved while taking the antipsychotic drug risperidone (Risperdal) had a high risk for relapsing when taken off the medication. Read MoreThe Shoe with In-built GPS that Tracks Alzheimer's Patients - and gives their Relatives Peace of Mind
Shoes with an in-built tracking device to locate Alzheimer's patients have gone on sale in the UK.
Designed to give worried relatives and friends piece of mind, the shoes enable the person
with Alzheimer's to be monitored remotely, giving them more freedom.
One of the most common concerns for families of an Alzheimer's sufferer is that the person often becomes lost after getting confused and disoriented.
Read MoreThe FDA has withdrawn its approval of Teva Pharmaceutical's Budeprion XL 300-mg tablets, a generic version of GSK's Wellbutrin XL extended-relief antidepressant.
Read MoreMagnetic Pulses While Brain Training Provides New Treatment for Alzhiemer's
A new treatment for Alzheimer's Disease that beams magnetic pulses into patients' brains is being trialled in Britain.
Researchers have found that focusing a magnetic field onto patients' heads while they answer questions or solve puzzles can reduce the symptoms of dementia and improve their memories.
The treatment stimulates key regions of the brain involved in memory and learning, enhancing patients' ability to make new memories.
The scientists behind the technique say it can allow Alzheimer's patients to live far more independently than they otherwise would and extends the time they can spend with their families before suffering the devastating mental decline associated with the disease. Read MoreAlzheimer's Wonder Pill that Halts Effect of Disease, Could be Available in Four Years
A pill said to halt the devastating onset of Alzheimer's disease could be on the market within four years, scientists said yesterday.
Believed to be more than twice as good as anything already available, it could greatly slow or even halt the progression of the cruel illness.
Given early enough, it could stop Alzheimer's from ever developing, an international dementia conference was told yesterday.
A version of the twice-a-day pill developed by British scientists has already been tested on patients, with 'unprecedented' results.
Its inventor, Professor Claude Wischik, of Aberdeen University, said: 'It flatlines the disease. If you get in early, you can pull people back from the brink.'
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