Effect of donepezil and kamikihito combination therapy on cognitive function in Alzheimer's disease: Retrospective study

Abstract

ABSTRACTAimKamikihito (KKT) is a herbal drug used in traditional Japanese medicine (kampo medicine) to treat psychological symptoms such as insomnia, restlessness, and fear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the combination of KKT extract and donepezil (DPZ) on the cognitive function of patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD).MethodsThe effect of this combination therapy (CBT) was analyzed retrospectively using Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE). AD patients were treated with DPZ (5 mg/day). Those with psychological symptoms, such as insomnia, were also given the KKT extract (7.5 g/day), beginning 3 months after the initiation of DPZ.ResultsMedical records of patients who visited the outpatient department for the first time between May 2010 and January 2013 were retrospectively evaluated, and six patients from each group selected as candidates for this study. Changes in total MMSE score for the DPZ and CBT groups were unremarkable until 6 months; at 12 months the scores were markedly, but non‐significantly, different: cognitive function was maintained in the CBT group while it deteriorated in the DPZ group. On MMSE subscale analysis, delayed memory recall score in the CBT group was sustained in a statistically significant manner.ConclusionCBT may prolong the effect of DPZ and, thus, CBT may be more beneficial than monotherapy using DPZ.