Researchers at the Mayo Clinic have demonstrated for the first time that the drug donepezil -- sold as Aricept -- can slightly slow the progression to Alzheimer's disease among patients with mild cognitive impairment. Vitamin E, on the other hand, was found to have no effect.
A study presented at an American Academy of Neurology found that when donepezil was administered to patients with mild impairment, those patients were at reduced risk of progressing to a diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease during the first year. There was, however, no benefit by the end of the third year of the trial.
While the impact was limited, researchers said they were excited because it was the first time that any drug has been demonstrated to show any postponement in the progression from mild impairment to full-blown Alzheimer's.
Researchers said the findings could shift goals towards developing earlier treatment of the Alzheimer's process and could be helpful in developing more effective drugs.
The study, which found that donepezil cut the risk of Alzheimer's by about one-third among patients who carry a genetic risk factor for the disease, is being published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Researchers cautioned that more data will be needed before routine genetic testing and administration of donezil are recommended in the general population.
Aricept is co-marketed by Pfizer Inc. and Eisai Inc.
The study was primarily funded by the National Institute on Aging, a unit of the National Institutes of Health.
