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Monday, February 28, 2005TWO drugs often prescribed for dementia are ineffective and one actually speeds mental decline, a study has shown. Quetiapine (sold as Seroquel) and rivastigmine (Exelon) are prescribed to nearly half the patients with dementia in residential homes in Britain, often for long periods. Patients are given the drugs to control behavioural changes such as agitation, which are disturbing to them and make them more difficult to look after. But a trial in Newcastle has suggested that the drugs are ineffective and, in the case of quetiapine, accelerate the progress of the disease. The trial, funded by the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, involved 93 people with Alzheimer’s living in care homes in Newcastle. It was led by Clive Ballard, of the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College London. The patients were treated with quetiapine, rivastigmine or a placebo pill. Neither of the groups given the active drugs showed any benefit in their agitation symptoms over six months. Those given quetiapine showed a much more rapid decline in mental capacities. A report published in the British Medical Journal says that it should not be used to treat such patients. The other drug, quetiapine (also known as Seroquel), isn't really an Alzheimer's drug. It's an anti-psychotic, used in dementia only to treat halluicinations and uncontrollable behavior. It should be no surprise that it's associated with a cognitive decline. It's meant to dull the brain. posted by Sydney on 2/28/2005 08:38:00 AM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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