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In a presentation of data at the 7th International Geneva/Springfield Symposium on Advances in Alzheimer Therapy in Geneva, Switzerland, Aricept-treated patients showed significant benefit over patients receiving Reminyl® as measured by a 13-item Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale, improvements on the Mini-Mental State Examination, and ADLs, as measured by the disability Assessment for Dementia scale.

This information will help physicians to properly prescribe medications and provide the most effective treatment.

"By comparing two available Alzheimer's disease medications, physicians now have clinical evidence that will help them prescribe the most appropriate treatment for their patients," said study investigator Roy Jones, MD, Research Institute for the Care of the Elderly, St Martin's Hospital, Bath, United Kingdom. "This three month study is encouraging news for mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease patients currently on Aricept®, as well as those who have yet to initiate treatment."

The 12-week, multinational (United Kingdom, Finland, Norway and Germany), head-to-head, randomized open-label study was designed to evaluate the safety and tolerability of Aricept® and Reminyl® in 120 patients mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. The study also investigated the effects of both treatments on cognition and ADLs, such as meal preparation and finance and correspondence.

Key study findings include:

• More patients were able to tolerate and remain on the maximum daily dose of Aricept® (10 mg once daily) than the maximum daily dose of Reminyl® (92 percent vs. 71 percent) until the end of the study or final patient visit. Almost one-quarter of Reminyl®-treated patients scaled down from the maximum dose to a lower maintenance dose due to tolerability.

• Significantly greater improvements in cognition were observed for Aricept® compared with Reminyl®. At Week 12 and endpoint, Aricept®-treated patients showed at least a two-point advantage over patients receiving Reminyl® on the 13-item modified ADAS scale. Modified ADAS assesses elements of cognition including the ability to recognize and recall words, comprehend spoken language, and name fingers and objects. The modified version used in this trial added two additional items: delayed recall and concentration/distractibility.

• Patients receiving Aricept® had significantly greater improvements in ADLs than those receiving Reminyl®, according to the DAD total score. DAD assesses instrumental and basic ADLs such as preparing meals, handling finances and correspondence and eating.

• More gastrointestinal adverse events were observed in Reminyl®-treated patients than the Aricept® treatment group. More patients taking Reminyl® reported nausea and diarrhea than those taking Aricept® (23.2 percent vs. 15.6 percent and 14.3 percent vs. 9.4 percent, respectively). Almost 13 percent of patients on Reminyl® reported vomiting as compared to zero patients on Aricept®.

During a 12-week period patients were treated according to the recommended dosing on the approved product labeling and dosing adjustments were allowed to reflect real world clinical practice.

"This study shows that more than 92 percent of patients were able to tolerate and remain on the maximum effective dose of Aricept® treatment until their final visit," said David Geldmacher, MD, clinical director, University Memory & Aging Center, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio. "For patients and their caregivers, these results, along with a simple dosing regimen, will likely mean better ability to tolerate the medication, fewer phone calls and less frequent office visits for managing problematic side effects."