Comparing treatment effects in a clinical sample of patients with probable Alzheimer's disease treated with two different cholinesterase inhibitors.

Background: The aim of this study was to compare the effect of treatment with different cholinesterase inhibitors (ChEIs) on mental status and every day function in a natural outpatient clinic setting, so that this evaluation could more realistically reveal the effects which are likely to be observed in patients attending ordinary dementia clinics rather than in the context of a randomised controlled drug trial.

Methods: Long term outcome of treatment with the ChEIs donepezil and rivastigmine was retrospectively evaluated in 147 patients with a clinical diagnosis of probable Alzheimer's disease of mild to moderate level of severity who had been monitored for a period of nine months. Measures included Mini Mental State Examination, Activity of Daily Living and Instrumental Activity of Daily Living scales.

[Effects of age on orientation of attention].

The present experiment investigated the influence of age on the magnitude of attentional effects. Subjects were cued to attend to one of two possible stimulus locations horizontally arranged. The instructions were to respond as fast as possible to the occurrence of a visual stimulus, regardless of whether it occurred in a cued or in a non-cued location.

[Clinical and laboratory evaluation of the efficacy of parenteral nutritional support in malnourished elderly].

The study was carried out on twenty nine geriatric patients with malnutrition of variable aetiology. The effectiveness of a temporary parenteral nutritional supplement was evaluated both clinically and by means of some metabolic indexes: nitrogen balance, serum albumin, blood electrolytes, acid-base parameters, hemocytometry. The treatment was devoid of metabolic complications, and promoted a positive nitrogen balance as well as clinical improvement in most patients.