Does taking aricept helps to treat dementia with history of ulcer?
Patient: my 94 year old mother was just prescribed Aricept. I don t think she should be on it. she doesn t have alzheimers but is showing signs of dementia short term memory is going and a little paranoid. she has had ulcers long time ago and has a very acidic stomach. Is this a medication she should be on? Doctor: Hi,Thank you for posting your query.I have noted your mother's symptoms.I agree with you that we can not be sure that she has Alzheimer's disease (AD), and she needs detailed evaluation. Evaluation would include CT scan of brain, thyroid profile, serum vitamin B12 level and neuropsychological testing.If it is confirmed as AD, then, it would be useful to give her aricept tablets.Acidity is not a contraindication for taking aricept (donepezil) tablets.I hope my answer helps. Please get back if you have any follow up queries or if you require any additional information.Wishing you good health,Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology)Senior Consultant NeurologistApollo Hospitals, Hyderabad, IndiaClick on this link to ask me a DIRECT QUERY: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumarMy BLOG: http://bestneurodoctor.blogspot.in