TY - JOUR
T1 - Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and Alzheimer's disease
T2 - The epidemiological evidence
AU - Szekely, C. A.
AU - Zandi, P. P.
PY - 2010/4
Y1 - 2010/4
N2 - Alzheimer's disease imposes a significant public health burden that will only worsen as the population ages. Thus, there is considerable motivation to develop effective strategies to treat, or more ideally, prevent the disease. Epidemiologic evidence has suggested that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (or NSAIDs) may be neuro-protective. However, this evidence is controversial. Observational studies in humans have found that the use of NSAIDs is associated with a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. By contrast, randomized trials have reported that NSAIDs are not effective in treating patients with clinically established disease nor in preventing the onset of dementia among those who are cognitively normal or have mild cognitive impairment. In this article, we review the existing epidemiologic evidence on the relationship between NSAIDs and Alzheimer's disease and discuss several hypotheses to explain the divergent findings.
AB - Alzheimer's disease imposes a significant public health burden that will only worsen as the population ages. Thus, there is considerable motivation to develop effective strategies to treat, or more ideally, prevent the disease. Epidemiologic evidence has suggested that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (or NSAIDs) may be neuro-protective. However, this evidence is controversial. Observational studies in humans have found that the use of NSAIDs is associated with a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. By contrast, randomized trials have reported that NSAIDs are not effective in treating patients with clinically established disease nor in preventing the onset of dementia among those who are cognitively normal or have mild cognitive impairment. In this article, we review the existing epidemiologic evidence on the relationship between NSAIDs and Alzheimer's disease and discuss several hypotheses to explain the divergent findings.
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U2 - 10.2174/187152710791012026
DO - 10.2174/187152710791012026
M3 - Review article
C2 - 20205647
AN - SCOPUS:77949892665
SN - 1871-5273
VL - 9
SP - 132
EP - 139
JO - CNS and Neurological Disorders - Drug Targets
JF - CNS and Neurological Disorders - Drug Targets
IS - 2
ER -