Related Experiment Videos
The Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale
1Psychiatry Service, Veterans Affairs medical Center, Bronx, New York, USA.
International Psychogeriatrics
|January 1, 1996
Summary
Alzheimer's disease (AD) cognitive symptoms worsen over time, while noncognitive symptoms are episodic. Longer clinical trials improve the detection of AD drug effects on cognitive decline.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Geriatrics
- Clinical Trials
Background:
- Alzheimer's disease (AD) presents complex challenges for clinical trial design.
- Understanding disease progression is crucial for evaluating therapeutic interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review longitudinal data for Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients.
- To inform the design and interpretation of clinical treatment trials for AD.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of longitudinal data from AD patients.
- Evaluation of the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale (ADAS) for cognitive symptom tracking.
- Assessment of noncognitive symptoms and functional measures.
Main Results:
- Cognitive symptoms (memory loss, dysphasia, dyspraxia) show relentless worsening, dependent on baseline severity.
- Noncognitive symptoms (agitation, mood, psychosis) are episodic and not consistently progressive.
- Increased reliability of cognitive change measures with longer follow-up durations.
Conclusions:
- Longer clinical trials enhance the detection of drug effects on cognitive deterioration in AD.
- Standardizing functional measures of daily living activities is critical for assessing AD treatment impact.