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Article Title
- Giving Up the Guns When a Family Member Has Alzheimer’s
- Care Management Program Is Reducing Need for Anti-anxiety Medication and Visits to the Hospital/Emergency Room
- Talking to a Loved One With Alzheimer’s
- 10 Powerful Ways to Commemorate Alzheimer’s Awareness Month
- Making the Most of Mealtimes for People With Alzheimer’s
- Family Members Provide 100 Hours a Month of Unpaid Care for Alzheimer’s
- Alzheimer’s Caregivers Should Be Screened for Depression
- Alzheimer’s Care Costs Far More Than Heart Disease or Cancer Care
- Obesity at Midlife May Speed Alzheimer’s Onset
- Hello from my mom
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- Daytime Sleepiness May Be Early Warning Sign of Alzheimer’s
- Alzheimer’s Disease Increases the Risk of Falls
- High Blood Sugar Tied to Memory Decline
- Blood Test for Alzheimer’s Gets Closer
- Worried About Your Memory? Alzheimer’s May Not Be to Blame
- Brain Changes of Menopause May Promote Alzheimer’s
- Predicting Who Will Get Alzheimer’s
- Personality Changes Are Not the Earliest Sign of Alzheimer’s
- Midlife Heart Problems Raise Alzheimer’s Risk
- Anemia Tied to Mild Cognitive Impairment Risk
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- New Drug Shows Promise for Alzheimer’s
- Pain Relievers Present Special Hazards in People With Alzheimer’s Disease
- Care Management Program Is Reducing Need for Anti-anxiety Medication and Visits to the Hospital/Emergency Room
- Music May Ease the Anxiety of Alzheimer’s
- Experimental Alzheimer’s Drug, Intepirdine, Disappoints in Study
- An Eye Scan for Alzheimer’s?
- Drug to treat Alzheimer’s is Ranked Highest
- Patients Often Fail to Adhere to Alzheimer’s Drug Schedules
- Could Treatments for Diabetes Help Treat Alzheimer’s?
- Pharmacists Can Aid in Alzheimer’s Care
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- 2 Hours a Week of Exercise Can Boost Brain Health
- ‘Exergames,’ Which Combine Exercise and Games, May Benefit Brain Health
- Eat Fish, Fruit, Vegetables and Nuts for Brain Health
- Beet Compound Shows Promise Against Alzheimer’s
- A Single Night of Not Sleeping Tied to Alzheimer’s Brain Changes
- Should Alzheimer’s Patients Drink Coffee?
- Can a Salad a Day Help Keep Memory Sharp?
- Fitness in Midlife Tied to Lower Dementia Risk in Old Age
- Doctor’s Orders: Exercise for the Sake of Your Brain
- Positive Beliefs About Aging May Help Fend Off Alzheimer’s
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- Alzheimer’s Rates Could Double in Coming Decades
- Combining Care Program With Medication Reduces Alzheimer’s Symptoms By 750%
- Fisher Center Scientists make two new Significant Discoveries in the battle against Alzheimer’s
- Dementia Rates Are Slowing, but Alzheimer’s Cases Continue to Rise
- Fisher Center Scientists Create a Novel Imaging Technology Allowing the 3D Visualization of Brain Defects That Cause Alzheimer’s Disease
- Negative Beliefs About Aging Could Prime the Brain for Alzheimer’s
- Recognizing Faces Is a Challenge for Those With Alzheimer’s
- Fisher Center Scientists Discover Pathway That may Lead to Alzheimer’s Disease
- Brain Scans Move Closer to Early Alzheimer’s Diagnosis
- Can Vitamin E Slow Alzheimer’s Decline?
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- Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation Earns Gold Seal of Transparency from GuideStar
- The Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation Earns Coveted 4-Star Rating from Charity Navigator for the 7th Consecutive Year
- Hear Kent Karosen, President and CEO of the Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation, describe his new book and the power of art therapy
- Fisher Center Scientists link a Mutation That Protects Against the Development of Alzheimer’s Disease
- Newly Inducted Into the Basketball Hall of Fame, Shaquille O’Neal, Joins the Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation to Raise Funds for Groundbreaking Research in the Quest for a Cure
- Pat Summitt, legendary women’s basketball coach, dies at 64
- Celebrating the life of Nancy Reagan for her Impact on the Fight to end Alzheimer’s
- WRNN Interview
- Fisher Center’s 20th Anniversary Celebration and recent activities
- Featured on NASDAQ’s Billboard
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Drug Facts: Cognex (tacrine)
Generic name: tacrine
Description
Available in 10 mg, 20 mg, 30 mg, and 40 mg capsules.
Why It’s Prescribed
To slow progression of symptoms during the early stages of Alzheimer’s. Because side effects can be severe, however, this drug is now rarely prescribed.
Who Benefits
Provides modest benefits in only about a third of people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s. The disease will continue to progress despite treatment.
How it Works
Slows the breakdown of acetylcholine, a chemical that aids memory by transmitting messages between brain cells.
Dosage Guidelines
To start: 10 mg, four times a day. The dose may be increased to up to 40 mg four times a day.
Onset of Effect
Benefits, if any, may appear within several weeks of starting the drug.
Storage
Store in a tightly sealed container away from heat, moisture and light.
Missed Dose
Take as soon as you remember, or resume your normal schedule if your next dose is within two hours.
Long-term Use
See your doctor for regular tests and exams if you are taking this drug long term. The drug is taken long term and may move the clock back a few months, but the disease continues to progress. If the drug seems to stop working, your doctor may switch you to another Alzheimer’s drug.
Side Effects
Serious: Unsteadiness or clumsiness, severe vomiting, racing or pounding heartbeat, seizures, liver damage.
Most common: Nausea, vomiting.
Less common: Stomach pain or cramps, indigestions, sore or achy muscles, headaches, dizziness, loss of appetite, diarrhea, belching, rapid breathing, flushed skin, increased urination, insomnia, watery eyes or mouth, runny nose, swelling in the legs or feet.
Precautions & Special Concerns
You will need blood tests every couple weeks to check for signs of possible liver damage.
When to Call the Doctor
If you experience side effects or the drug seems to stop working.
In Case of Overdose: Symptoms & What to Do
Profuse sweating or salivation, seizures, muscle weakness, severe nausea or vomiting, rapid and weak pulse, slowed heartbeat, enlarged pupils in the eyes, irregular breathing. Call your doctor, emergency medical services, or poison control center immediately.
Drug Interactions
May interact with cimetidine, anti-inflammatory pain relievers, or theophylline. Antihistamines, antipsychotic drugs, and some drugs for incontinence may also diminish its effects, as may smoking (nicotine).
Food Interactions
No known food interactions. Avoid alcohol if you are taking this drug.
Disease Interactions
Consult your doctor if you have asthma, epilepsy or seizures, heart disease, an ulcer, bowel or liver disease, Parkinson’s disease, urinary tract problems, or have had a head injury.
Expert comment
“For some people with Alzheimer’s disease, this drug can lead to improvements that the family can see. In others, responses may only be detectable under special testing conditions, or there may be no measurable response at all. It is important that family members and physicians maintain realistic expectations for drug therapy and remember that, as with all current Alzheimer’s drugs, responses are generally only modest at best.” –Samuel E. Gandy, M.D., Ph.D., Scientific Advisory Board, Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation