Intravenous immunoglobulin stabilized Alzheimer’s disease symptoms for 3 years, according to data presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Vancouver, BC.
Sixteen patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease who participated in a 6-month phase 2 double blind placebo-controlled study of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) agreed to continue treatment after a 12-month open-label extension. Patients were assigned IVIG (Gammagard, Baxter) 0.4g/kg biweekly, with cognitive, functional and behavioral evaluations at 6-month intervals, continuing for 3 years.
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Stable Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale, Clinical Global Impression of Change, Neuropsychiatric Inventory and other standard measures of cognition were recorded in patients treated with the standard IVIG dose for the full 36 months. The same cognitive, functional and behavioral measures declined significantly in patients who had received placebo or other IVIG doses.
“This is the first study to report long-term stabilization of Alzheimer’s symptoms with IVIG,” researcher Norman Relkin, MD, PhD, of Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, said in a press release. “While the small number of participants may limit the reliability of our findings, we are very enthusiastic about the results. A phase 3 trial is in progress and, in less than one year, we’ll have more definitive data on the efficacy of 18 months of IVIG treatment.”
For more information: Relkin N. #P3-381: Three Year Follow-up on the IVIG for Alzheimer’s Phase II Study. Presented at: Alzheimer’s Association International Conference; July 14-19, Vancouver, BC.
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