Memory Assessment and Research Centre, Moorgreen Hospital, Botley Road, Southampton, SO30 3JB, UK.
Expert Rev Neurother. 2001 Sep;1(1):61-9. doi: 10.1586/14737175.1.1.61.
Alzheimer's disease is a growing problem in an aging Western world, estimated to have cost the US economy USD 1.75 trillion. Until recently, the management of Alzheimer's disease largely comprised support for the family, nursing care and the use of unlicensed medication to control behavioral disturbances. The three new acetylcholinesterase inhibitors licensed to treat Alzheimer's disease (donepezil, rivastigmine and galantamine) have provided clinicians with a major impetus to their desire to diagnose and treat this lethal disease. Their effects on cognition are proven. More recent work on the effects of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors on behavioral symptoms, activities of daily living and caregiver burden have also been encouraging. Emerging work indicates their likely efficacy in other dementias (e.g., vascular dementia, dementia with Lewy bodies). This review summarizes the evidence concerning the impact of acetylcholinesterase inhibitors in dementia both currently and over the next 5 years.
阿尔茨海默病在老龄化的西方世界是一个日益严重的问题，据估计已给美国经济造成 1.75 万亿美元的损失。直到最近，阿尔茨海默病的治疗主要包括对家庭的支持、护理以及使用未经许可的药物来控制行为障碍。三种新获得许可用于治疗阿尔茨海默病的乙酰胆碱酯酶抑制剂（多奈哌齐、利斯的明和加兰他敏）为临床医生提供了诊断和治疗这种致命疾病的动力。它们对认知的影响已被证实。最近关于乙酰胆碱酯酶抑制剂对行为症状、日常生活活动和护理人员负担影响的研究也令人鼓舞。新出现的工作表明它们在其他痴呆症（如血管性痴呆、路易体痴呆）中的可能疗效。这篇综述总结了目前及未来 5 年乙酰胆碱酯酶抑制剂在痴呆症中的作用的证据。
