University of Vermont

Observed every November since 1983, National Alzheimer's Disease Month calls attention to a condition that effects an estimated five million Americans, according to the Alzheimer's Association. The sixth-leading cause of death in the United States, Alzheimer's Disease (AD) destroys nerve cells in the brain, causing such hallmark symptoms as problems with memory, learning, reasoning or judgment, loss of the ability to speak or understand someone else speaking, disorientation and a decline in the ability to perform everyday tasks. A study recently published by investigators at Boston University School of Medicine estimated that women are more at risk than men for developing AD in their lifetime, with a risk of one in six versus one in ten for men.

Paul Newhouse, M.D., professor of psychiatry and director of the Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit at the University of Vermont and Fletcher Allen, is currently the site leader for several clinical research trials related to AD. One study is evaluating the effectiveness of an investigational medication hoped to improve the memory and other cognitive functions of people with AD. Patients between the ages of 50 and 90 years old who are currently taking donepezil (also known as Aricept), a popular AD treatment, may be eligible to participate.

Other AD trials run by Newhouse include a national study using Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT) imaging to understand the disease process of AD and an examination of whether short-term estrogen use will enhance the effects of donepezil in women with early AD.

To find out more information about these AD trials, contact Sally Ross Nolan at 802-847-9488 or visit Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit.