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Has Dementia And Alzeimers. Taking Aricep, Respidon And Pacitane. Almost Mute, Excess Saliva And Violent.

My dad has been diagnosed with dementia and Alzheimer's since 2009. From 2012 Feb, he has been taking Aricep, to which Respidon 1mg and Pacitane 2mg have been added in March 2013 following a violent attack. Aricep dosage has also been increased to 7.5 mg from 5 mg. However, subsequently, he has become almost mute, still and docile. He constantly carries excess saliva in his mouth, forgets even the slightest things almost instantly, is prone to panic attacks and mistrust, and has become obsessive about certain things, like some medicines and some foods in his diet. now that the violent attack of early-March is over, I'm considering going back to just 5 mg Aricep, removing Respidon and Pacitaine completely, since they are the ones which seem to have induced the effects I describe above. Would that be OK? How should one reduce dosage of such drugs—all at a time, or gradually?
posted on Wed, 8 May 2013
Twitter Wed, 22 May 2013 Answered on
Twitter Fri, 12 Jul 2013 Last reviewed on
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Neurologist 's  Response
Hi,
Thank you for posting your query.
I can understand the difficulty in managing a person with advanced Alzheimer's disease.
You can reduce the dose of Aricep to 5 mg.
Pacitane is given to reduce the tremors and reduce the side effects of risperidone. It can cause agitation and restlessness and you can stop it.
Rispidon controls agitation, so, you should reduce the dose gradually, under the supervision of a doctor.
Please get back if you require any additional information.

Best wishes,

Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology)
Senior Consultant Neurologist
Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad,
My personal URL on this website: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar
My email: drsudhirkumar@yahoo.com
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  User's Response
Managing Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms in Dementia (BPSD) is not easy. The responses to medications is not very smooth and predictable. There will be a lot of variation from week to week and month to month.
You have described the typical problem in your father's case.

Increasing medications bring temporary relief from agitation, suspiciousness or aggression; however people with dementia are also sensitive to side-effects of the medications. This will require a reduction in dosage.
You may consult your doctor regularly whenever problems arise.
Reducing dosage of medications has the risk of worsening aggression. It is a calculated risk.

In addition you may use certain methods to control or reduce aggression:-

1) Since dementia is associated with memory loss, you will notice that the suspicions are also short-lived. You can avoid any arguments with your father when he expresses his suspicions and picks up a quarrel. He can also be distracted at this time if possible, by raising some other common or neutral topic. It can help in avoiding arguments. If it fails you can temporarily leave the place after ensuring there is no possibility of his harming himself.

2) BPSD are likely to increase when there is sudden change in situation (such as travel to someone's place, or presence of guests for an evening). You can reduce the impact by announcing in advance and repeatedly reminding him that guests will be coming to meet him. If he gets agitated when the guests arrive, you can let him be in his own room and avoid the stimulation caused by the social interactions.

3) Repeated checking of his memory by questions may also cause irritability. This may not be done by you or immediate family members, but more by guests. Again, giving him the answers directly instead of testing his memory can prevent 'catastrophic reactions' as they are called.
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Has Dementia And Alzeimers. Taking Aricep, Respidon And Pacitane. Almost Mute, Excess Saliva And Violent.

Hi, Thank you for posting your query. I can understand the difficulty in managing a person with advanced Alzheimer s disease. You can reduce the dose of Aricep to 5 mg. Pacitane is given to reduce the tremors and reduce the side effects of risperidone. It can cause agitation and restlessness and you can stop it. Rispidon controls agitation, so, you should reduce the dose gradually, under the supervision of a doctor. Please get back if you require any additional information. Best wishes, Dr Sudhir Kumar MD (Internal Medicine), DM (Neurology) Senior Consultant Neurologist Apollo Hospitals, Hyderabad, My personal URL on this website: http://bit.ly/Dr-Sudhir-kumar My email: drsudhirkumar@yahoo.com