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Aricept for ms

Common Questions and Answers about Aricept for ms

aricept

900662 tn?1469390305 After discussion with MS Neuro and my wife , we agreed that I should start Aricept , it is used mostly for Alzheimer, so its off label and he says it has shown great results. I do have a damaged working memory and slower processing speed, cognitive impairment effects every day in some small way. I won't reveal to any other family or friends that I ve stated this med, I just think I would feel self-conscious about people looking for my errors and mistakes.
Avatar f tn I have been taking aricept for about 9 months. It is hard to tell if there is an improvement. It has been a while since I forgot my way home but I still forget a lot of little stuff. I keep taking it because I am convinced it cant hurt anything and it just might help a little.
246236 tn?1275478902 My neurologist wants me to start on Aricept for my cognitive issues. Apparently it just became available in generic about 3 weeks ago, but she gave me a month's sample of the actual Aricept. I'm excited to take it (I'm going to start it tomorrow so I have a few weekend days to know how it affects me), especially if it helps! I've looked online and on previous forum posts but didn't find a lot regarding actual experiences from those taking it who have MS.
704043 tn?1298056844 It's used to treat cognitive impairment with Alzheimer's. I'm not sure why the drug works for MS patients... It was like when you have low water pressure in the house, so you turn the water up higher. It was kinda like that - I wasn't processing with all my brain, but the parts that were working, were working overtime.
Avatar f tn They say now that Aricept binds receptors that would otherwise heal, so it's not good for MS - it's specifically for Alzheimer's. My new neuro was horrified when she learned I had been on it for five months. I don't know anything about that - all I know is that before Aricept, I was in a gray mist, and after five months of Aricept, everything seemed to make more sense.
338416 tn?1420045702 //clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00062972?term=aricept&recr=Open&rank=35 it is in stage III, and out of New York which is not TX, but maybe they know of other sites? Or you could do this study remote with the help of your doctor? I can't give you advice about talking to your supervisor - you have to decide that one.
338416 tn?1420045702 D'oh-oh'oh! Evidently I'm not 100% better! I haven't been on Aricept for 70 days - it's only been 40+ days, maybe 50. Dunno what I was thinking. I've never before had to worry about whether I could overdose on a drug. I think I accidentally took two one time - I had a hard time sleeping, and felt a little like everything was in high-resolution. Little hard to explain, but easier if you've ever taken hallucinogens.
429700 tn?1308007823 t show marked improvement for people with MS, but he has seen otherwise in his MS patients and has also heard otherwise. I am very hopeful about this. I know there's others on the forum that have tried it. I would love to hear about that. I also am going to start oral predinisone. He thinks that this may help the neck pain calm down a little. I may be having a bit of an MS flare (some arm weakness and muscle spasms). The bulging discs are not related to the MS, he says, BTW.
649926 tn?1297657780 Hi! Thanks for the info on Aricept. I have a few days left until I see the Doctor and I guess Aricept is the front runner. Of course she may not be willing to give me anything, but I am pretty sure that she will once we talk. If anyone has scoop on their experience with Aricept or any other cognition helping drug please take a minute to chime in.
338416 tn?1420045702 The psychologist recommended aricept, so I asked for a sample from the neurologist. You would have thought I wanted heroin. I managed to talk him into giving me a month of the 5 mg samples of Aricept, but as he said "There are no clinical trials which show that Aricept helps with mild cognitive impairment." Dunno. I'm on the second week of Aricept. The cobwebs have been wiped from my mind, and I feel like myself for the first time in more than a year. Psychosomatic?
1842804 tn?1319756311 Hi, As a continuation on cognitive problems in MS (my main concerns) I wanted to ask: what meds did you try for that? As it is often connected with fatigue, my neuro gave me provigil (didn't really work for me and gave me awful headaches when weaning off) and ratilin (slightly better but also ends with headache). It seems most of meds I take give me headaches (I also have migraines). Are there any other medications for that?
Avatar n tn Those are standard anti-depressents. However, I personally know about Aricept because I tried it for tardive dyskinesia and had a pretty poor response. My grandfather was prescribed Aricept for age related memory loss after a cardiovascular impairment. He couldn't tolerate it either. That doesn't mean at all its the wrong medication generally. Its just it has a fair amount of side effects for some people.
Avatar m tn Is the person having memory problems? If not, why are they taking it? There are lots of drugs that have "off label" uses for lots of drugs so perhaps it was prescribed for something else. The doctor can probably let you know what that is and why it's being used. I don't think it will hurt, but there are side effects in every med and it would be a good idea to check drug interactions, etc. Try Drugs.com. If you cannot speak to the patient's doc, can you call your own?
Avatar f tn My husband has been taking 10mg of Aricept for 2 years now and I have not noticed any significant difference in his memory. Actually, my observation is his memory is becoming worse. I'm struggling with whether I should discontinue the medication since I don't see improvement and because it is quite costly. I also know Aricept is designed to slow down the dementia so if I discontinue it I'm wondering if he will become worse much faster.
147426 tn?1317265632 Acetyl-L Carnitine with alpha-lipoic acid Estriol (female replacement hormone) Aricept's chemical name is: donepezil hydrochloride Baclofen diazepam, in case it hasn't been mentioned.
Avatar n tn This should be started only on prescription of your treating physician. It is used for treatment of Alzheimer’s, but is helpful for short term memory loss. Aricept is a drug of choice to treat Alzheimer's, but its use is not restricted. It has been observed that Aricept improves cognition and function, which includes effects on memory and performing everyday tasks, hence it would have been prescribed. The effect of memory is exerted through one such chemical called acetylcholine.
338416 tn?1420045702 ) I asked him for a prescription for Aricept, and he seemed a little annoyed. He said that there are no real clinical trials to prove the effectiveness of Aricept on mild cognitive impairment, and that it would be a waste of time. I'm not sure he understands the results of the exam. I'm moderately impaired in a few specific areas. Average it out, and I'm in the 'mild' category. But at any rate, I talked him into giving me a month's worth of Aricept.
147426 tn?1317265632 15 - Went to PCP for shortness of breath, seizures, and to talk about Aricept. She gave me a sample inhaler for the shortness, but it's not helping, and recommended I talk to my neuro about seizures and aricept. Called the neuro office that day, and got in! That never happens. Went to neuro at 4:00. Neuro wants me to keep an eye on the seizures. He wanted to know if I wanted anti-seizure medication, I said no.
1658667 tn?1310091382 hey, I go through that and don't know the answer. I always think it's my age.. in the fifties so looking forward to hearing from others to see what they say. I forget so much.
Avatar n tn Hi there, No wonder your weepy. Pain like this, no sleep, which magnifies everything - your at your wits end no doubt. I have chronic in my neck, probably structural and lesion compounding issue. Causes headaches, pain in my shoulder, then my arm, etc. I take naproxen to keep some inflammation down, but pain is never gone. I've never been on anything to actually combat it. Are you on and DMDs? If you mentioned and I didn't see, I apologize.
900662 tn?1469390305 When I was diagnosed with MS, it was 2007. I was in a flare, and I had a couple more that year. It took me a long time to recover. Afterwards, I could tell that my brain wasn't working right. I sought out and got a neuro-psych exam, and it showed mild cognitive impairment. Which apparently isn't that big of a deal, but the real analysis was in the psychiatrist's report, which said I had some specific deficits. I went to my neurologist and asked for a sample of Aricept.
961762 tn?1265229711 As far as cognitive problems associated with MS, I have had pretty bad ones, and I guess it would depend on their severity, but my MS doc put me on Aricept and Adderall (which is used in ADHD too) and they have helped a lot. These two together have improved my memory and some other cognitive problems, though I still struggle in other ways cognitively.
Avatar f tn I was diagnosed with MS almost 2 years ago and have noticed much more frequent, severe mood swings. I am beginning to have more short term memory loss as well. However, there are times where I feel as though I can do anything and not need sleep. I am not being treated with steroids, and do daily injections of Copaxone. Are these mood swings and memory issues somehow related or located in the same area of the brain? Would taking Namenda and Aricept together help?
645390 tn?1338555377 I have lived in Ohio since 1983, but I was born and raised in Niagara Falls, NY. Wonder if either location played a part? I was diagnosed in Feb. 2008.