My Mom Is An Assisted Living Facility And Was Elevated

Posted on Thu, 29 Nov 2018

Question: My mom is an assisted living facility and was elevated to hospice care last April to get more quality care as she is in a wheelchair. She is taking Aricept and Namenda for her dementia. Her memory is bad at times and sometimes not so bad. The hospice service called me to ask if they can take my mother off these medications. In taking her off of these medications will her dementia get worse or is she at the state where they really do not do her any good.?

Answered by Dr. Dr. Erion Spaho (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Maybe one drug could be stopped.

Detailed Answer:
Hello and welcome to 'Ask a Doctor' service.

I have gone through your query and here is my advice.

Aricept is used in all stages of the Alzheimer's disease, Namenda is used usually for the moderate to severe stages of Alzheimer's.

So, my opinion is, your mother can be for now treated with Aricept.

Namenda may be reserved in case of worsening of dementia.

I think that stopping both drugs may result in worsening of the condition.

Please remember, these types of drugs should be stopped gradually, not cold turkey.

Do discuss with the treating Neurologist for these.

Hope you found the answer helpful.

Let me know if I can assist you further.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Arnab Banerjee