The Brown University Geriatric Psychopharmacology Update articles from September 2004

The Brown University Geriatric Psychopharmacology Update archives from September 2004

National effort focuses on finding ways to prevent Alzheimer's disease.(The 9th International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders)
September 1, 2004... Scientists at the 9th International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders (ICAD), presented by the Alzheimer's Association in Philadelphia, July 2004, stressed the importance of reducing the cost and complexity of Alzheimer's...

Pharmacotherapy of bipolar disorder in the elderly: experts cite lack of data.(Bipolar Disorder)
September 1, 2004... Between 5 and 19% of elderly patients carry diagnoses of manic conditions or bipolar depression, yet effective treatment and management of their illness presents a significant challenge. Since finding appropriate pharmacotherapy strategies is...

Possible interaction between donepezil and muscle relaxants used during ECT.(Drug--Drug Interactions)(electroconvulsive therapy)
September 1, 2004... Donepezil (Aricept) is a reversible inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase that is available for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The inhibition of acetylcholinesterase leads to increased availability of acetylcholine in the brain, resulting in...

Few differences among three AD treatments.(What's New In Research)
September 1, 2004... A meta-analysis study compared the safety and efficacy of donepezil (Aricept), galantamine (Reminyl) and rivastigmine (Exelon) for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease, finding that other than some dose-related differences, the three drugs were...

Side effects of SSRIs and TCAs in elderly compared.(What's New In Research)(selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)
September 1, 2004... Researchers from the University of Liverpool, UK, analyzed data from 11 clinical trials comparing selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) with tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) in older, depressed patients. They found that SSRIs are more...

Risperidone (generic): Risperdal, Risperdal consta (brand).(Your Medication Information)
September 1, 2004... CLASSIFICATION: Atypical antipsychotic. COMMON USAGE: Risperidone has FDA-approved indications for the treatment of schizophrenia and for the short-term treatment of acute mania or mixed episodes associated with bipolar disorder in adults,...

Clinical trials recruiting AD patients.(News Notes)
September 1, 2004... B-vitamins may reduce homocysteine levels in AD patients Vitamins to slow ALzheimer's disease (VITAL) is a multicenter clinical trial to determine whether reducing homocysteine levels with high-doses of folate/B6/B12 will slow the rate of...

Janssen clarifies risk with Risperdal.(From the FDA)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Responding to a warning letter sent by the FDA, Janssen Pharmaceutical Products have notified health care providers that it minimized safety risks associated with the atypical antipsychotic risperidone (Risperdal). In the April warning letter,...

Acamprosate approved for alcohol dependence.(From the FDA)(United States. Food and Drug Administration)
September 1, 2004... The FDA has approved a delayed-release formulation of acamprosate calcium (Campral) for the treatment of alcohol dependence, Forest Laboratories and Merck KGaA announced in July. As the first new medication in nine years approved for treating...

Duloxetine approved for depression.(From the FDA)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The FDA has approved duloxetine (Cymbalta) for the treatment of major depressive disorder, Eli Lilly announced. Duloxetine, considered a dual-reuptake inhibitor affecting both serotonin and norepinephrine, is thought to treat emotional and...

COX-2 inhibitor induced delirium in AD patient.(Case Report)
September 1, 2004... Patient: female, 82 y/o Medications: refecoxib (Vioxx), olanzapine (Zyprexa), divalproex sodium (Depakote), trazodone (Desyrel) Comment: An 82-year old woman was admitted to a geriatric psychiatry unit due to increasing agitation,...