Is Antidepressant Treatment Associated with Reduced Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer’s Disease?

• Published in: Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders Vol. 25; no. 4; pp. 372 - 379
• Main Authors: Mossello, Enrico, Boncinelli, Marta, Caleri, Veronica, Cavallini, Maria Chiara, Palermo, Eliana, Di Bari, Mauro, Tilli, Sabrina, Sarcone, Eva, Simoni, David, Biagini, Carlo Adriano, Masotti, Giulio, Marchionni, Niccolò
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel, Switzerland Karger 01.04.2008; S. Karger AG
• Subjects: Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Alzheimer Disease - drug therapy; Alzheimer Disease - psychology; Antidepressive Agents - administration & dosage; Biological and medical sciences; Cardiovascular system; Cognition - drug effects; Cognition Disorders - drug therapy; Cognition Disorders - psychology; Degenerative and inherited degenerative diseases of the nervous system. Leukodystrophies. Prion diseases; Depression - drug therapy; Female; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Neurology; Original Research Article; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Retrospective Studies; Severity of Illness Index; Treatment Outcome; Vasodilator agents. Cerebral vasodilators; Depression; Alzheimer's disease; Dementia; Antidepressant drugs; Mood disorder; Nervous system diseases; Treatment; Cognitive disorder; Alzheimer disease; Central nervous system disease; Degenerative disease; Cerebral disorder
• ISSN: 1420-8008; 1421-9824
• DOI: 10.1159/000121334

Background: Although antidepressant drugs (ATD) are frequently prescribed to patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD), their effect on cognitive status has been only rarely assessed. Methods: The impact of depressive symptoms and ATD on cognitive status was retrospectively assessed in 72 older AD outpatients with mild-to-moderate cognitive impairment, treated with cholinesterase inhibitors, over a 9-month follow-up. Results: Compared to subjects without baseline depressive symptoms, those with symptoms who were continuously treated with ATD had less cognitive decline; those never treated, or not continuously treated despite baseline symptoms, had an intermediate trend. Such a protective action of ATD was, at least in part, independent of their action on depressive symptoms. Conclusion: These observations suggest that ATD may reduce cognitive decline in depressed older AD patients.