What's the evidence for donepezil? | Life and style | BMJ Group BMJ Group, Thursday 5 March 2009 00.00 GMT can help people with mild or moderate Alzheimer's disease.[1] [3] In most studies, people took the drug for three months or six months. The studies showed that people who took donepezil could think more clearly and seemed to do better than people who took a dummy treatment (a placebo). But in some studies, when doctors asked people how they were, people said they didn't feel any better.[1] People who have Alzheimer's disease slowly lose their memory and ability to think clearly. As the disease gets worse, they get more confused and start acting differently. Several changes happen in the brain that stop it working properly. Small lumps called amyloid plaques grow in the parts of the brain used for memory and thinking. And bundles of twisted threads called 'neurofibrillary tangles' form inside brain cells. These stop brain cells communicating with each other, and they can cause cells to die. Also, in Alzheimer's disease, the brain does not have enough chemical messengers (neurotransmitters), and holes or gaps appear where brain cells have died.
