[Anti-Dementia Drugs (Anti-Alzheimer's Disease Drugs)]

Brain Nerve. 2023 May;75(5):464-469. doi: 10.11477/mf.1416202360.
[Article in Japanese]

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatment includes both non-pharmacological and pharmacological approaches. Current pharmacological approaches include symptomatic and disease-modifying therapies (DMTs). In Japan, DMTs have not yet been approved for treating AD; however, four drugs are currently available for symptomatic therapies, including cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) such as donepezil for mild-to-severe dementia, galantamine and rivastigmine for mild-to-moderate dementia, and memantine, an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist, for moderate-to-severe dementia. In this review, we describe the use of four symptomatic anti-AD drugs in clinical practice for AD.

Publication types

  • Review
  • English Abstract

MeSH terms

  • Alzheimer Disease* / drug therapy
  • Cholinesterase Inhibitors* / pharmacology
  • Cholinesterase Inhibitors* / therapeutic use
  • Donepezil / therapeutic use
  • Galantamine / therapeutic use
  • Humans
  • Memantine / pharmacology
  • Memantine / therapeutic use
  • Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate
  • Rivastigmine / therapeutic use

Substances

  • Cholinesterase Inhibitors
  • Donepezil
  • Rivastigmine
  • Galantamine
  • Memantine
  • Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate