Aricept for Parkinsons? - Parkinson's Disease Message Board

ritabus · 08-09-2003, 03:50 PM

My mother, who is 83 y.o. has Parkinsons and her doctor just prescribed Aricept for her. After just reading the literature I see that it has been approved for Alzheimer's. Has anyone heard of taking it for Parkinson's? As far as I know, she does not have Alzheimers and has never been tested for it.

Rita

jennifer44 · 08-10-2003, 05:08 PM

Hi there - My father was also prescribed Aricept for his PD. He didn't stay on the medication long because he was feeling dizzy and they thought it may be a side effect of the medication. (He still experiences dizziness so I don't know if it was from the medication or not). They have found that Aricept can help some people with PD related dimentia. If your mother is experiencing dimentia as a symptom of her Parkinson's Disease, that may be why they prescribed it to her. I hope that it is able to help her.

ritabus · 08-10-2003, 07:14 PM

As far as I can tell she is not suffering from dementia.
The nurse had asked her a number of questions about a year ago, some of which whether she was or was not suffering from dementia, she wouldn't have known the answer to 40 years ago if you had asked her. I think I'm going to call him.

Rita

Bruce · 08-11-2003, 10:36 AM

Although Aricept is used to treat the symptoms of A.D., PD and AD have similar symptoms. It is not only used to treat dementia, but it is believed the drug helps thinking and memory.

Bruce