My father has been on arricept for 10 years , over which period there has been a gradual decline , however 3 weeks ago the GP , without discussing with the family , ( dad is in a care centre for dementia) withdrew the Arricept and since then There has been a huge decline in dads health , he now sleeps nearly all the time and has become very unsteady on his feet, whereas previously this was not an issue , he has had 2 falls on 2 days , his appetite has declined and over the last 4 months has lost 4 kgs . Advice would be appreciated . I appreciate this could be coincidental or has anyone had similar experiences , thank you a concerned daughter jacqui
Jacqui
- Thread starter Barraby
- Start date
I'm pretty sure it isn't coincidental. Our consultant told us they don't withdraw Donepezil anymore precisely for that reason - a sudden decline in the condition. Have you got health LPA by any chance? Then the GP should have informed you. Talk to him and see whether it can be reinstated though he might never be as good as he was before, I'm afraid.
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I'm beginning to wonder if this is a new approach by the NHS, yours is about the third post I have read recently saying that a loved one has had aricept/donepezil withdrawn.
I was under the impression that when aricept is deemed to have served its purpose, the patient is moved to another medication - often memantine (though, as with all medications, it is not suitable for everyone).
My husband has been on a low dose of aricept/donepezil for five years now and I am pretty sure it is no longer helping him (although, quite how sure anyone can be about these things, I don't know).
However, what I do know is that when my husband was being assessed in a secure unit last year, and his medication was under review, the care co-ordinator told me that they would keep hubby on the donepezil, even though he was past the stage it is usually administered for, because it would negatively affect his general well-being and state of mind if it was stopped.
There's no clear cut answer though, because I am also aware of people who were taken off of aricept and all other dementia medication and they coped well for years afterwards.
I was under the impression that when aricept is deemed to have served its purpose, the patient is moved to another medication - often memantine (though, as with all medications, it is not suitable for everyone).
My husband has been on a low dose of aricept/donepezil for five years now and I am pretty sure it is no longer helping him (although, quite how sure anyone can be about these things, I don't know).
However, what I do know is that when my husband was being assessed in a secure unit last year, and his medication was under review, the care co-ordinator told me that they would keep hubby on the donepezil, even though he was past the stage it is usually administered for, because it would negatively affect his general well-being and state of mind if it was stopped.
There's no clear cut answer though, because I am also aware of people who were taken off of aricept and all other dementia medication and they coped well for years afterwards.
