ARICEPT® (Donepezil) effective for severe Alzheimer's disease - The Doctors Lounge(TM)Donepezil reverses some aspects of cognitive deterioration seen in severe Alzheimer's disease.The drug donepezil can reverse some aspects of cognitive and functional deterioration seen in patients with severe Alzheimer's disease, according to a randomised trial published online today (Wednesday March 22, 2006) by The Lancet. In their trial Bengt Winblad (Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden) and colleagues recruited Alzheimer's patients over 50 years of age from 50 nursing homes in Sweden. They assigned 95 patients to donepezil and 99 to a placebo for 6 months. The investigators found that those on donepezil had improved cognition and ability to carry out daily activities when compared with those on placebo. More patients on the active drug had side effects than those in the placebo group but these were usually transient and mild to moderate in severity.
