Social Psychiatry, Vol. 47 No. 3, 2019.
Professional paper
https://doi.org/10.24869/spsih.2019.325
Treatment Approach to Alzheimer’s Disease
Aida Križaj Grden
; University Psychiatric Hospital Vrapče, Referral Centre for Alzheimer’s disease and Old Age Psychiatry of the Ministry of Health, Zagreb
Ninoslav Mimica
; University Psychiatric Hospital Vrapče, Referral Centre for Alzheimer’s disease and Old Age Psychiatry of the Ministry of Health, Zagreb; University of Zagreb, School of Medicine, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative brain disorder and the most common type of dementia. AD is a syndrome leading to progressive loss of cognitive functions, often followed by behavioural and psychological symptoms. Amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles are implicated in functional and neurodegenerative changes leading to neuronal death. A curative treatment does not exist. Pharmacological treatments include cholinesterase inhibitors (donepezil, galantamine, rivastigmine) and NDMA receptor antagonists, which have been shown to improve cognitive functions and some of them may also have positive effects on behavioural symptoms. None of these drugs effect the course and outcome of the disease. New drugs that can interfere with β-amyloid and tau protein metabolism are being researched. Neuromodulator methods of treatment such as TMS and tDCS are being researched and have shown positive effects on cognitive functions. Cognitive stimulation has also shown positive effects so it is not surprising that more research is being aimed at studying the combined effects of neuromodulator treatment and cognitive stimulation, which is in practice possible using the NeuroAD™ system.
Keywords
Alzheimer’s disease; Dementia; Pharmacological Treatment; Cognitive Stimulation; tDCS; TMS
Hrčak ID:
232343
URI
Publication date:
12.11.2019.
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