Treating behavioral and psychological symptoms in patients with psychosis of Alzheimer's disease using risperidone.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

To examine the effect of risperidone on specific behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) among patients with psychosis of Alzheimer's disease (AD).

METHODS:

Post hoc exploratory analysis of data on 479 nursing-home patients with psychosis of AD from three 12-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials. Criteria for psychosis of AD were a diagnosis of AD or mixed dementia and a rating of >/= 2 on any delusion or hallucination item of the Behavioral Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease (BEHAVE-AD) rating scale when entering the trial. Mean changes from baseline to endpoint were examined for items on the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI) and BEHAVE- AD.

RESULTS:

On the CMAI, risperidone was significantly more effective than placebo in treating cursing or verbal aggression (p = 0.004), hitting (p < 0.001), performing repetitious mannerisms (p < 0.001), pacing, aimless wandering (p = 0.017), hoarding things (p = 0.02), hiding things (p = 0.02) and repetitive sentences or questions (p = 0.025). On the BEHAVE-AD, risperidone was significantly more effective than placebo in treating physical threats and/or violence (p = 0.001), agitation (other) (p = 0.001) and verbal outbursts (p = 0.026). Although analysis on individual hallucination and delusional items did not demonstrate specific responses, analyses of a composite of delusional items revealed significant drug-placebo differences.

CONCLUSIONS:

These data indicate that risperidone is effective in treating a variety of symptoms associated with psychosis of AD.

• Authors: Jonathan Rabinowitz, Ira Katz, Peter Paul De Deyn, Andrew Greenspan, Henry Brodaty
• Journal: International psychogeriatrics (Int Psychogeriatr) Vol. 19 Issue 2 Pg. 227-40 (Apr 2007) ISSN: 1041-6102 [Print] England
• PMID: 16879763 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial)

Chemical References

• Antipsychotic Agents
• Risperidone

Topics

• Aged
• Alzheimer Disease (epidemiology)
• Antipsychotic Agents (therapeutic use)
• Double-Blind Method
• Female
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Psychomotor Agitation (drug therapy, epidemiology, psychology)
• Psychotic Disorders (drug therapy, epidemiology)
• Risperidone (therapeutic use)
• Surveys and Questionnaires