Two cases of discontinuation syndrome following cessation of memantine.

Although memantine is widely used and generally considered safe, an abrupt cessation of memantine may result in discontinuation syndrome that can be distressing and result in decline of natural course. We report two patients who developed significant behavior disturbance after abrupt cessation of memantine. Although re-trial of memantine improves these symptoms, more additional drugs may be required to achieve previous status.

Quantitative EEG findings in different stages of Alzheimer's disease.

Although quantitative EEG (q-EEG) has been used in Alzheimer's disease (AD), q-EEG changes in AD are complex because of the progressive nature of this disease. The topographical spectral power and occipital peak frequency (OPF) were compared among elderly controls, patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and patients with four stages of AD. In AD patients, except those with a Clinical Dementia Rating Scale (CDR) score of 0.

"Closing-in" phenomenon in Alzheimer's disease and subcortical vascular dementia.

Background: The 'closing-in' phenomenon is defined as a tendency to close in on a model while copying it. This is one of several constructional apraxia observed in dementia, particularly in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The aim of this study was to investigate the usefulness of it in the differential diagnosis of AD and subcortical vascular dementia (SVD) and to clarify the factors associated with it.

Change of dopamine receptor mRNA expression in lymphocyte of schizophrenic patients.

Background: Though the dysfunction of central dopaminergic system has been proposed, the etiology or pathogenesis of schizophrenia is still uncertain partly due to limited accessibility to dopamine receptor. The purpose of this study was to define whether or not the easily accessible dopamine receptors of peripheral lymphocytes can be the peripheral markers of schizophrenia.

Results: 44 drug-medicated schizophrenics for more than 3 years, 28 drug-free schizophrenics for more than 3 months, 15 drug-naïve schizophrenic patients, and 31 healthy persons were enrolled.