Objective: To assess the real-life clinical outcome of patients with probable Alzheimer’s disease (AD) after treatment with galantamine.
Design: A retrospective chart review of 120 patients was used to assess the effects of galantamine treatment.
Materials and methods: A chart review was conducted on patients with probable AD treated at Senior Care of Colorado in Aurora, Colorado, between May 2001 and August 2002. Selection criteria specified that study patients would have stable health, stable psychotropic medication usage, and a diagnosis of probable AD. The charts of 120 patients receiving galantamine were reviewed, and cognition was assessed with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) at baseline and 6 months (if applicable).
Results: The records of 120 patients were reviewed. There were 29 (24.2%) males and 91 (75.8%) females, with an age range of 60 to 99 years (mean, 83.1 years). Fifty-six percent resided in an assisted-living facility. Galantamine dosages for all patients had been escalated from 16 mg to 24 mg/day. Therapy was continuous for up to 15.5 months (mean, 7.5 months). Baseline and 6-month follow-up MMSE evaluations were possible for 39 patients. The MMSE average score at initiation of therapy was 16.88 (baseline range, 6–27), with an average improvement of +1.33 (endpoint range, 7–27) after an average of 6 months of galantamine therapy. Additionally, patients exhibited improvements in speech and language as well as functional abilities, but no emergence of behavioral problems. Satisfaction with patient response to galantamine was expressed by at least 95% of caregivers. Galantamine was safe and well tolerated in the patients reviewed.
Conclusions: Galantamine is a novel cholinergic agent approved for the treatment of mild-to-moderate AD. Galantamine has demonstrated broad, sustained benefits in clinical trials on cognition, global function, activities of daily living (ADL), and behavior for up to 1 year in patients with mild-to-moderate AD. Realistic expectations involving the maintenance or improvement of cognitive function have been satisfied with galantamine, as shown in this retrospective review of real-life clinical situations. As the data demonstrate, caregivers are satisfied with the results of galantamine treatment. Patients and their physicians can be confident about the use of approved therapies, such as galantamine, for the treatment of symptoms associated with mild-to-severe AD.
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