Ways we treat Alzheimer’s disease
If you receive the life-changing diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, we want you to know that you’ll have an entire team of Alzheimer’s disease doctors and other specialists dedicated to creating a personalized treatment plan that gives you the best possible quality of life.
Your team will include cognitive neurologists, neuropsychiatrists, nurses, social workers, pharmacists, psychometricians and research coordinators.
Medication treatment options for Alzheimer’s disease
Though there is currently no cure for the disease, most individuals with Alzheimer’s disease benefit from medications that slow the symptoms (declining memory and mental functioning) from worsening for a period of time.
For these medications to be most effective, they should be started as soon as possible in the course of the disease, which is why early diagnosis is so important.
Alzheimer’s medications we use include:
- Cholinesterase inhibitors, which help with memory and thinking by slowing the breakdown of an important brain chemical involved in memory functions
- Anti-amyloid monoclonal antibody treatments, the first disease modifying therapies for Alzheimer's disease which slow the progression and functional decline of Alzheimer's disease by removing clumps of proteins called amyloid-beta proteins that play a key role in Alzheimer’s disease
- NMDA (N-methyl D-aspartate) receptor antagonist, specifically memantine, which helps to regulate the abnormal activity of glutamate in the brain, a chemical important for learning and memory
- Antioxidants, such as vitamin E, to act as an antioxidant to boost the body’s natural defense mechanisms against brain cell damage
Our pharmacist in the Memory Disorders Clinic can further discuss these medications with you, and our social worker can work with pharmaceutical companies if you’re unable to afford medicines.
Also, our Alzheimer’s doctors successfully treat many of the disease’s behavioral symptoms, including depression, anxiety, restless behaviors, psychosis, paranoia, hallucinations, mood changes, sleep disorders and appetite disturbances. This can improve quality of life for both you and your caregivers.
Non-drug therapies for Alzheimer’s disease
Some symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, such as restlessness, agitation, depression and mood changes, can be treated by using environmental and behavioral techniques, in addition to medications.
Some of these approaches include:
- Occupational therapy – Our occupational therapists offer tips to modifying home environments to make them safer and less stressful for those with dementia. That includes preventing falls, reducing clutter and noise to allow better focus, hiding dangerous objects, like knives, and installing monitoring systems for safety.
- Social work – Our highly trained social workers can link you and your caregiver to community resources and options with assisted living, nursing homes and daycare facilities.
- Proven stress-reducing techniques – We’ll work to educate you and your caregiver on how to limit stressors and deal with conflict. Some ideas include creating routines to reduce confusion and breaking tasks into smaller steps to allow for focusing on success.