Effect of concomitant use of yokukansan on steady-state blood concentrations of donepezil and risperidone in real-world clinical practice.

Aim: Yokukansan is one of the most frequently used herbal medicines that can improve the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia. In this exploratory study, we investigated whether yokukansan affects the steady-state blood concentrations of donepezil, risperidone, and the major metabolites of both drugs in a real-world clinical setting.

Methods: A non-randomized, open-label, single-arm study examining drug-drug interactions was conducted.

Clinical features of behavioral symptoms in patients with semantic dementia: Does semantic dementia cause autistic traits?

Objective: To investigate the behavioral characteristics of semantic dementia (SD) using an instrument originally developed for patients with autism spectrum disorder.

Methods: The behavioral symptoms of 20 patients with SD and 20 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) in both the preclinical state and the dementia state were evaluated using the Pervasive Developmental Disorders Autism Society Japan Rating Scale (PARS).

Results: The SD group showed high prevalence in four behaviors related to stereotypy and social impairment: eating very few food items, selfishness, difficulty in recognizing others' feeling and thoughts, and interpreting language literally.

Relationship between Dementia Severity and Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia in Dementia with Lewy Bodies and Alzheimer's Disease Patients.

Background/aims: Behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are common in the clinical manifestation of dementia. Although most patients with dementia exhibit some BPSD during the course of the illness, the association of BPSD with the stage of dementia remains unclear. It was the aim of this study to evaluate the impact of severity of dementia on the expression of BPSD in patients with dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Relationship between dementia severity and behavioural and psychological symptoms in early-onset Alzheimer's disease.

Background: The features of behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are influenced by dementia stage. In early-onset Alzheimer's disease (EOAD), the association between BPSD and dementia stage remains unclear because of the difficulty of recruiting subjects with a wide range of disease severity. We used a combination of community-based and hospital-based approaches to investigate the relationship between dementia severity and BPSD in EOAD patients.

Efficacy of increasing donepezil in mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease patients who show a diminished response to 5 mg donepezil: a preliminary study.

Background: With the recent approval of several new drugs, pharmacological management of Alzheimer's disease has become more complicated in Japan. The efficacy and safety of increasing the dose of donepezil to 10 mg daily were assessed in an open-label study of patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease who were showing a diminished response to 5 mg daily.

Methods: The subjects included 27 patients with mild to moderate probable Alzheimer's disease whose primary caregivers had confirmed progression of symptoms during treatment with donepezil 5 mg daily.

The usefulness of monitoring sleep talking for the diagnosis of Dementia with Lewy bodies.

Background: Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is the second most common type of neurodegenerative dementia. It is frequently difficult to differentiate DLB from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other types of dementia. This study examined the usefulness of monitoring sleep talking for the diagnosis of DLB.

Association of cerebral small vessel disease with delusions in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Background: Cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) is frequently observed in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the association between SVD and clinical symptoms exhibited by patients with AD remains unclear. This study examined the association of SVD as observed on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia and cognitive function of patients with probable AD.

Impact of donepezil hydrochloride on the care burden of family caregivers of patients with Alzheimer's disease.

Background: To evaluate the impact of donepezil hydrochloride on the care burden on family members of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). At present, donepezil is the only drug approved for the treatment of AD in Japan. Although the care burden on primary caregivers of AD patients comprises both physical and psychological burdens and donepezil is recognized to improve cognitive dysfunction and associated symptoms, there are few data on the effects of the drug on the care burden.