Familiarity and Perceptions of Aducanumab in Caregivers of Hawaii Alzheimer's Disease Patients: Results of a Telephone Survey

Connor Goo; Frances Morden; Kasen Wong; Sarvia Aquino; Jaron Kawamura; Vanessa Rubel; Samantha Masca; Rachel Gorenflo; Enrique Carrazana; Kore Liow

doi:10.7759/cureus.50001

Familiarity and Perceptions of Aducanumab in Caregivers of Hawaii Alzheimer's Disease Patients: Results of a Telephone Survey

Cureus. 2023 Dec 5;15(12):e50001. doi: 10.7759/cureus.50001. eCollection 2023 Dec.

Authors

Connor Goo^{1

2}, Frances Morden^{1

2}, Kasen Wong^{1

2}, Sarvia Aquino¹, Jaron Kawamura¹, Vanessa Rubel¹, Samantha Masca¹, Rachel Gorenflo¹, Enrique Carrazana^{1

2}, Kore Liow^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Brain Research, Innovation & Translation Laboratory, Hawaii Pacific Neuroscience, Honolulu, USA.
² Neurology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, USA.

Abstract

Aim: To identify current perceptions of aducanumab among patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and their caregivers.

Methods: A total of 352 caregivers of AD patients seen at Hawaii's largest multidisciplinary neuroscience center between January 01, 2019, and June 21, 2021, were surveyed by telephone to understand patient and caregiver knowledge, familiarity, and hesitancy toward aducanumab.

Results: Thirty-seven percent of caregivers were familiar with aducanumab. Caregivers who were spouses of their respective patients with AD (p=0.0023) had increased odds of familiarity. Additional predictors of aducanumab familiarity included patients with higher mini-mental state examination scores (p=0.0076) and those who received mental stimulation (p=0.007). Conversely, caregivers who identified as native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders (NHPI) (p=0.044) or the patient's child (p=0.010) were predictors of decreased familiarity. Only 33% of caregivers familiar with aducanumab believed it to be safe and 56% reported "side effects" as their top concern. Thirty percent of caregivers were moderately ready or very ready to use aducanumab if given the opportunity.

Conclusion: Most caregivers of Hawaii AD patients were unfamiliar with aducanumab. Furthermore, those familiar were hesitant to trial the medication. Improved education and awareness of AD therapies are important, so families and caregivers of AD patients can make more informed decisions regarding AD treatment.

Keywords: aducanumab; aduhelm; alzheimer's disease; caregiver; hawaii; phone survey.