Current Ways to Treat Alzheimer S

Alzheimer's Disease

The author of this report has been asked to lay out a "well-orchestrated" approach to treating someone that is living with Alzheimer's disease. As would be the case with many to most disorders, there are both lifestyle measures as well as pharmacological methods that could and should be used when it comes to the treatment of Alzheimer's. There is no cure for Alzheimer's. Even so, the medical field is progressing as it relates to treating the disorder, perhaps slowing it down, minimizing the nasty effects and perhaps someday curing it. While a cure is not known right now, there are specific things that should be done for an Alzheimer's patient.

As indicated in the introduction, there are going to be two major aspects of giving relief to someone with Alzheimer's. There are the general care options and then there are the drug-related options. Also as noted in the introduction, there is no cure for Alzheimer's. At this point, the main goal is more palliative care and slowing down/minimizing symptoms. Indeed, some symptoms can be eased by engaging in certain methods. The drugs that are often prescribed for Alzheimer's center on the symptoms that can and do surface as a result of a patient having Alzheimer's. These include mood, depression and irritability drugs like citalopram (Celexa), fluoxetine (Prozac), paroxetine (Paxil) and sertraline (Zoloft). There can also be panic attacks and the like and those can be relieved through drugs like alprazolam (Xanax/Niravam), busprione (BuSpar), lorazepam (Ativan) and oxazepam (Serax). There are other ancillary and extra drugs that may be useful. The brand names for these drugs include Abilify, Zyprexa, Haldol and others. However, many of these drugs should be used with extreme care because they have what are known as "black box" warnings. Indeed, Haldol is an anti-psychotic and should be used with great caution (WebMD)

As for treatments that are not at the prescription drug level, one thing that can be used is vitamin E. Vitamin E is an antioxidant and it is thought to protect nerve cells from danger. Doctors often do not have it used because they do not believe it works. However, this was a common method used in the past. Something that has also been identified but is still commonly used is hormone replacement therapy, or HRT for short. This is more of a preventative measure rather than one that deals with the disease when it comes. Indeed, it is recommended that women with a dearth of estrogen should take synthetic versions of the drug so as to stave off Alzheimer's. There are other recommendations such as exposing Alzheimer's patients to art and music as a way to trigger memories and otherwise stimulate their brains. Supplements that have not been discarded as useless include coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), coral calcium, huperzine A and omega-3 fatty acids such as in fish oil supplements (WebMD). The Alzheimer's Association website is quick to add that there are often sleep disturbances associated with Alzheimer's. These can be treated with non-drug and drug remedies, depending on the specific symptoms and the precise nature of the disturbances (Alz.org).