Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (Boston) in the United States have tested an anti-battery drug, levitraacetam for its potential impact on brain activity in patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease. This anti-stackptic drug, leviracetam, is believed to restore cerebral activity in mild Alzheimer’s disease, according to results of a study published in the journal Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease. This is because leviracetam normalizes brain wave frequencies in patients with Alzheimer’s disease.
In this double-blind study, a small group of patients with Alzheimer’s disease light took an electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure electrical activity and an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), to quantify blood flow in the brain . At each of the three visits, they received injections containing either an inactive placebo or the anti-seizure drug levetiracetam, at a low dose (2.5 mg / kg) or at a higher dose (7.5 mg / kg). Neither the patients nor the healthcare professionals knew which injections the patients were receiving, but each patient eventually got one of three substances in a random order. After receiving the treatment, the patients’ brains were again auscultated. Then, the patients took a cognitive test, designed to measure memory, executive functioning, naming, visio-spatial ability, and semantic function, all abilities affected by Alzheimer’s disease.
The results of the study showed that the higher doses of the anti-stackptic made it possible to normalize the abnormalities seen in the patients’ EEGs. Indeed, the anti-pileptic allows to normalize the frequencies of the cerebral waves, abnormally high or abnormally low in these patients affected by the Alzheimer’s disease. On the other hand, a single dose of anti-stackptic would not be effective enough to improve cognitive function. “It should be noted that we did not show any improvement in cognitive function after a single dose of the drug in this study,” said Daniel Press. “It is too early to use this drug widely, but we are preparing for a larger and longer study.” While the results of this study are encouraging, further research is needed on larger patient samples.
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