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Memantine in Alzheimer's disease: experience in an Alzheimer's disease assessment unit

Elena Sinforiani1, Chiara Pasotti, Laura Chiapella

  • 1Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Unit/Laboratory of Neuropsychology, IRCCS C. Mondino National Institute of Neurology Foundation, Via Mondino 2, 27100 Pavia, Italy. elena.sinforiani@mondino.it

Aging Clinical and Experimental Research
|July 31, 2012
PubMed
Abstract

Insights

Memantine demonstrated sustained efficacy for moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease (AD) over two years, showing persistent benefits in cognitive and behavioral symptoms for many patients. The treatment was generally well-tolerated, with long-term effects observed in both monotherapy and combination treatments.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Pharmacology

Background:

  • Memantine is an N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor antagonist with demonstrated efficacy in Alzheimer's disease (AD).
  • Previous studies show memantine benefits cognitive and behavioral symptoms in moderate-to-severe AD with a good safety profile.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the long-term (two-year) experience with memantine in patients with moderate-to-severe Alzheimer's disease.
  • To assess memantine's efficacy and tolerability in both monotherapy and combination with acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs).

Main Methods:

  • A two-year follow-up study of 201 outpatients with moderate-to-severe AD treated with memantine.
  • Patients received either memantine monotherapy (n=108) or memantine with AChEIs (n=93).
  • Standardized scales (MMSE, ADL, IADL, NPI) were used for assessments at multiple time points.

Main Results:

  • 8% of patients discontinued memantine within the first month due to side-effects.
  • Approximately 20% of patients in both groups showed no deterioration at six months and one year, with slight decreases at two years.
  • Higher baseline NPI scores and psychotropic drug use were associated with reduced treatment response.

Conclusions:

  • Memantine confirms short-term efficacy in moderate-to-severe AD, whether as monotherapy or combined with AChEIs.
  • The observed efficacy of memantine persists into the longer term, albeit with slight reductions over time.
  • Memantine is a viable treatment option for managing cognitive and behavioral symptoms in AD patients.

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