Discontinued Use of Aricept

[Patty]

"She has discontinued all meds and after two weeks she finally appears to be her normal self. She is no longer repeating things, her memory seems to have gotten better, and I am convinced these drugs do not work and they are certainly not proven."
Concentrating on nutrition and hydration gives most seniors more measurable results that all of these new drugs. The physicians usually do not really know how they work and they are so heavily marketed it's hard to know if they really do work. All of the drugs come with side effects that are usually less desirable and more dangerous than the original condition. My advice that worked for my mom is to just insure she eats well and drinks lots of water. It is important to see a physician but be wary of prescription drugs that cannot be measured with lab results.

[debilu]

My mother was started on Aricept by dr. at assisted-living facility. She was already having pretty severe problems with incontinence and this seems to have worsened recently (especially at night). I can't relate this to anything except the start of this new med. Does anyone know of this being a side-effect? I am becoming leary of this drug after reading comments on this site!

[Shar]

My mother-in-law is 87 and over the past 2-3 years she has been repeating things. My husband took her to a neuro and had the test where they ask you basic questions. Well, yesterday the doctor put her on 5mg. of Aricept. She also has vertigo. Over ten years ago she had 5 bypasses and takes meds for that plus is a diabetic. This neuro said that she has mild cognitive loss. Is this the same thing as alzheimer's. It amazes me that these doctors don't even give you a brain scan to see if you have the beginnings of dementia. Get inside the brain to see what is going on. I hope this helps her. He wants to see her again in a month.

[dkuch55]

Renee wrote:

<quoted text>
Explain to me why there is rapid decline when Aricept is stopped. If it has indeed stopped working, then it shouldn't create a sharp decline when withdrawn because it isn't working to begin with! If it is STILL working, why would you take her off? I am currently having this arguement with her doctor. I do not want her taken off this drug. She has had good results.

I am curious, did you ever get an answer to your post? I am having the same argument with my husband's doctor. It just doesn't make any since if they are telling me that the drug was no longer working then why did he decline so rapidly when it was discontinued? In a matter of a few months he went from being able to acknowledge my presence, smile and overall bein in a happy frame of mind to now pretty much just staring into space with no expression and no emotion. I have a feeling that the discontinuation of Aricept after a long period of time has a lot more to do with insurance than any real medical reason. I think the whole thing is despicable.

[Linda]

Has anyone heard that one of the ways to tell if Aricept has stopped working is when they start to lean to the right? I agree with all of the comments on this page. The doctors don't know what they are doing anymore than we do. I am convinced that this is just a way for the drug companies to make more money and our family members are being hurt in the process. I need help to make a decision about whether or not to take her off the meds.

[Michelle]

debilu wrote:

My mother was started on Aricept by dr. at assisted-living facility. She was already having pretty severe problems with incontinence and this seems to have worsened recently (especially at night). I can't relate this to anything except the start of this new med. Does anyone know of this being a side-effect? I am becoming leary of this drug after reading comments on this site!

Yes, incontinence is listed as one of the side affects of aricept. Go to www.Drugs.com to see the list for aricept and namenda.

[Michelle]

Shar wrote:

My mother-in-law is 87 and over the past 2-3 years she has been repeating things. My husband took her to a neuro and had the test where they ask you basic questions. Well, yesterday the doctor put her on 5mg. of Aricept. She also has vertigo. Over ten years ago she had 5 bypasses and takes meds for that plus is a diabetic. This neuro said that she has mild cognitive loss. Is this the same thing as alzheimer's. It amazes me that these doctors don't even give you a brain scan to see if you have the beginnings of dementia. Get inside the brain to see what is going on. I hope this helps her. He wants to see her again in a month.

Find another doctor! AND I would insist on a cat scan or MRI. They will give you some information, and you should ask for copies of hte pictures which they can put on a disk for you, in case you want a second or third opinion. A lot of doctors will just quickly diagnose AD because there's really not a lot they can do for any dementia. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a lot of distinguishing visuals for AD. There's what they call "white matter" disease which looks like a bunch of spots on the brain, and those can be caused by AD or other forms of dementia. But I think a scan is a good start. Also a general vein health assessment since vascular dementia is treated a little differently than other causes. For instance if it's vascular, then you'd want a low fat diet and aspirin whereas other causes might benefit more from another approach. I've found in my internet research of brain health that the number one thing we can do for ourselves is to get regular aerobic exercise. Good luck!

[Michelle]

Linda wrote:

Has anyone heard that one of the ways to tell if Aricept has stopped working is when they start to lean to the right? I agree with all of the comments on this page. The doctors don't know what they are doing anymore than we do. I am convinced that this is just a way for the drug companies to make more money and our family members are being hurt in the process. I need help to make a decision about whether or not to take her off the meds.

hmmm, I've never heard of the leaning to the right thing. I'll have to look into it. I know that my mother can barely walk. She's 70 and has been on aricept and namenda for 4 years. The past few months she's been regressing rapidly and now is in constant pain all over, has clammy sweats, nausea, anorexia, weight loss, constant crying, etc. She's absolutely miserable all the time. The doctors tell me that to take her off will cause her to lose any benefit she may have gained and essentially jump to whatever brain place she would have been by now had she never taken it. I'm willing to take that chance for her and let her live her last few months in peace. She's already unable to think clearly or remember what she was just trying to say and can't even speak to make sense. It is breaking my heart to see her struggle with these side affects. So I will be taking her off the drugs tomorrow and even if she ceases to remember who I am, I will still think it's the right thing for her. Good luck with your decision. This disease just sucks!!

[Michelle]

dkuch55 wrote:

<quoted text>
I am curious, did you ever get an answer to your post? I am having the same argument with my husband's doctor. It just doesn't make any since if they are telling me that the drug was no longer working then why did he decline so rapidly when it was discontinued? In a matter of a few months he went from being able to acknowledge my presence, smile and overall bein in a happy frame of mind to now pretty much just staring into space with no expression and no emotion. I have a feeling that the discontinuation of Aricept after a long period of time has a lot more to do with insurance than any real medical reason. I think the whole thing is despicable.

Our doctors had actually advised against discontinuing either aricept nor namenda, because it's been noted that even though there's not gain from taking after a few years, there seems to be a loss of gain when it's discontinued. In my situation, I'm wanting to stop it because my mom is having severe side effects.

[graham powell]

what type of side affects are there when stopping aricept