There is an interesting article about Aricept over on the New Old Age Blog. Basically, Jane Gross puts the knock on Aricept. She does back up her words.6 Tips for Caregivers
- Alzheimer's and the Dreaded Shower
- How to Get An Alzheimer's Patient to Take a Bath (by Carole Larkin)
- Dementia Shower and the Use of Positive Thinking
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Does Aricept work?
My conversations with caregivers indicate that most believe it is ineffective.
Further conversations with them indicates that they believe the drug is designed to stop Alzheimer's in its tracks. Aricept is designed to slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease. Aricept is very expensive, and it has lots of side effects.
My mother takes Aricept and it is my belief that the drug does work as expected for us. I believe it did slow the progression of her Alzheimer's disease.
Can I be certain? No. I don't have anything to compare our results with; I just don't know what would have happened without Aricept.
I can say this with confidence. The combination of Aricept, exercise, good nutrition, vitamins, supplements, and a large dose of loving care giving did work for us.
I am now reminded of an article that I wrote some time ago about the combination of Aricept and Namenda. My mother now takes both drugs. I am a believer in the combination of the two drugs. It has been working for us.
The Combination of Aricept and Namenda Helps Slow the Rate of Decline in Alzheimer's Patients
There is some good news on the horizon. Aricept goes generic in November, 2010. It will then become a cheap generic drug. My hope is that it will help those families coming to the Alzheimer's rollercoaster ride in the future.
For what it is worth, Terry Pratchett believes Aricept worked for him.
If you have an opinion on Aricept, use the comments box below the article to tell us about your experience.
Conundrum: a question or problem having only a conjectural answer; anything that puzzles.
Also see: Eisai’s Patents on Alzheimer’s Drug Aricept Expires in 2010 Price to Drop
Bob DeMarco is the Founder of the Alzheimer's Reading Room and an Alzheimer's caregiver. The blog contains more than 2,201 articles with more than 272,100 links on the Internet. Bob resides in Delray Beach, FL.
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Original content Bob DeMarco, the Alzheimer's Reading Room