Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Patches for Alzheimer's

Rivastigmine is widely approved for the treatment of mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease and is currently given in the form of capsules which have to be swallowed. The makers of the drug have now developed a patch - similar to the nicotine replacement patches used by smokers - and a trial on 1,195 Alzheimer's patients has found that this is effective as the capsules. The patches caused less nausea and vomiting than the capsules and only 10% of people suffered from skin irritation.

Winblad, Bengt ... [et al] - A six-month double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of a transdermal patch in Alzheimer's disease - rivastigmine patch versus capsule International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry May 2007 22(5), 456-467

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