VITAL SIGNS: PROGRESSION; Drugs Found to Have Effect on Alzheimer's Disease
By Nicholas Bakalar
Published: November 29, 2005
A new study suggests that cholesterol-lowering drugs like statins and fibrates may slow the course of Alzheimer's disease.
The study followed the progression of 342 patients for three years. Of them, 234 had high cholesterol, and 129 of those were given medicine to lower their cholesterol.
The patients were scored on a test of mental function at the beginning and end of the study. Those treated with anti-cholesterol drugs were significantly less likely to show declines in cognitive abilities than those left untreated.
The study was published in the December issue of the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry.
An editorial accompanying the paper points out that previous evidence that lowering cholesterol may help prevent Alzheimer's disease says nothing about whether it slows its progress once it has begun, and that this paper presents a well-designed study showing that treatment can also delay dementia once the disease has taken hold.
Still, the study has weaknesses: it does not sort out the cholesterol-lowering effects of these drugs from any other effects they may have, and it provides no suggestion about possible mechanisms of the effect.
Drawing (Illustrations by Stuart Goldenberg)