Any improvment shown with aricept.?

[malomm]

The results of my wife'a recent nuclear SPECT scan were seen yesterday, and for the first time in 5 years I got a definitive answer. According to her neurologist, she is suffering from a mixture of vascular demntia and alzheimer. His view, and that of our GP, is that the two can't realistically be separated diagnostically. He has prescribed a 90 day course of 5mg.aricept, to be reviewed end of October. Can any members tell me what improvements, if any, I am likely to see?.It's not all that long ago that our GP was saying that drugs were a waste of time and money. Thanks for any views.
Got to get back to the kitchen now to prevent lunch being massacred
keep smiling,
malomm

 

[Yanni]

The results of my wife'a recent nuclear SPECT scan were seen yesterday, and for the first time in 5 years I got a definitive answer. According to her neurologist, she is suffering from a mixture of vascular demntia and alzheimer. His view, and that of our GP, is that the two can't realistically be separated diagnostically. He has prescribed a 90 day course of 5mg.aricept, to be reviewed end of October. Can any members tell me what improvements, if any, I am likely to see?.It's not all that long ago that our GP was saying that drugs were a waste of time and money. Thanks for any views.
Got to get back to the kitchen now to prevent lunch being massacred
keep smiling,
malomm

I hope the meal is safe! I saw little improvement with Aricept. My understanding is that it will slow the symptoms while not doing anything to tackle the progress of the disease. My husband did have a few weeks after starting Aricept when he was more wide awake but it's difficult to assess whether it's slowing anything down or not when there is nothing to compare it with.

The cynical part of me agrees with your GP but I don't feel I can reject anything that might be helping. There are occasional side effects but my husband hasn't suffered from any of these. Best Wishes for the future for you

 

[emwmarine]

I can only speak about my mum's experience.

I could detect no real difference that it made to her, or her rate of decline. If anything when she came off it, as her memory had deteriorated to the point where she doesn't score anything, she became less agitated.

In my mind it seems like how they used to treat an infection with iodine before they discovered antibiotics.

The real treatment is out there soemwhere waiting to be discovered and this is just, maybe a bit more than a placebo.

All in my opinion.

 

[Beate]

For my OH Aricept was a mood enhancer more than anything. In his own words: "I feel more positive." And that's got to be worth something.

 

[Pickles53]

My mum was taken off Aricept after a week because it gave her a sleepless night (at least we think it did because that is one of the possible side effects). She was so frightened by this that she has since refused to try anything else. I wish she had been able to try it for longer if it can enhance mood as she is so desperately miserable now. I'd be willing for her to try anything which might make her feel less than 100% negative even if it didn't help much with the memory loss.

 

[pamann]

Hello malcolm my husband has been on Aricept for 16months, 5mg for l month then up to 10mg, l found it helped my husband, he was much more with it, his last memory test had improved by 3 points, sad to say now he has got worse, don't think they are working, going back to the memory clinic in Sept so will see how he is then will let you know, hope it helps your wife if only for 16months would be good.

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[JayGun]

My MIL has been taking Ariceot for about 18 months now.

She is better since she's been on it, but we don't know how much to attribute to the Aricept, and how much to the relief of being diagnosed, knowing what the problem is, and having it taken in hand. And also her accepting a certain level of help which makes her happier, which leads to less agitation, and therefore fewer really difficult episodes.

I smile regularly at how much happier she was as soon as she was told her diagnosis because she fought tooth and nail against going to the doctors for about three years.

With all these factors in play it's very difficult to say what can be attributed to the Aricept.

Personally, I find my MIL to be extremely variable anyway. She is worse at certain times of day, better with certain people, worse in the wintertime, better in spring and summer, worse when tired, hungry or upset. Worse when surprised. Better in person, worse on the phone. Maybe. I'm not actually sure about that last one.

 

[malomm]

Thanks for the input everybody. We'll give it a try, hopefully without side effects. Lunch was duly massacred, as usual, but I have a secret weapon -lashings of black pepper, Worcester sauce, and parmigiana.
keep smiling,
malomm .

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[benjie]

Hi my husband (aged 70 when diagnosed) went straight onto Seroquel and Aricept and there was an improvement in his psyche. He was more or less his old self but eventually did deteriorate but that was always brought on by little infections which is par for the course. I found that it did have a delaying effect and calming.

What I will say is that your GP was out of turn in stating that drugs were no use - as if dismissing your hubby out of hand. I find that indefensible. I do understand that there is a movement away from the use of drugs but the person needs to be treated holistically with full knowledge of that person. It is still a little way off.

 

[zeeeb]

Mum was diagnosed at age 57. she went on aricept and had an improvement. she went from someone looking like a nervous breakdown on legs, to back to something of a normal person. We didn't notice the change so much, but then we trialled taking her off aricept (in order to diagnose her parkinsons tremors or just see if it was side effects of aricept) and she went right back immediately to the "walking nervous breakdown" version of herself.

It seemed to stabilize her for a couple of years, but she is deteriorating quite fast still. I honestly feel that she would be worse without it. and deteriorating faster.

 

[ringtor]

My husband had taken Donezepal (aricept) for a year now and has stayed stable and cheerful. It doesn't seem to mix with his statin, which his doctor prefers, but alone it does well. He has Vas Dem and mid Alz. His memory test was the same a year later so I hope the aricept is holding things steady.

 

[Canadian Joanne]

I found my mother's mood improved greatly. She was very agitated and aggressive and the Aricept helped for quite some time. She currently is on Ebixa and Reminyl. Although she is in the last stages of Alzheimer's, we are keeping her on the AD meds while she is still physically capable of swallowing.

 

[Linbrusco]

My Mum 73 with Alz, was put on 5mg back in December for 3 mths.
Between Dec and March this year ,Mums memory had declined but her overall mood had improved. Less anxious definitely.
March this year her dose was increased to 10mg.
She had tummy upsets, and constipation which we tried to manage but in the end by June her GP reduced the dose to 5mg again.
Her memory and cognitive decline is slowly getting worse, but as our Alzheimers Key worker says, how much worse would it have been if she wasn't on it?

 

[malomm]

Thanks for the further comments folks. Looks like aricept here is considered a 'controlled substance'.In the first instance the neurologist had to fill in and issue a sort of 'ration book' with his diagnosis and reccomended dosage. Yesterday we had to take this to our GP, who also had to fill in his page, stamp it, and issue the actual prescription. We then had to take this to the chemist, who also has to fill it in and stamp it, and keep hold of it until 10:30 this morning when I can go and collect the actual pills; enough for 56 days.
keep smiling,
malomm

 

[lu]

Hello Malomm.....this disease is spread over so many factors that it must be very difficult for a neurologist to treat. Absolutely no one responds the same. Aricept did not work for my husband at all. Made him so jittery and anxious. I know a person can get over drugged , anything is worth a try. At the moment he is on galantamine and memantine for slowing the progress, and quetiapine for relaxing, if that is possible. Heaven knows whether the progression is working, but for him the quetiapine is doing wonders for his sleeplessness at night. This in turn, has helped me sleep also. I notice reading the responses to your question that there are different results in aricept. All, I guess, are experimental, but keep trying until you find what is best. Sure will be thinking of you while you go through this. Not at all easy. Hopefully, you will find a drug that works. God less and care for you....

 

[woody]

My husbands been on aricept for three years and I don't think it's doing much one,he takes it in the morning because he suffered nightmares taking it at night,i do believe it slows things down.