Cognitive rehabilitation associated with AChE-I treatment can potentially be useful to stabilize or improve cognitive and functional performance of patients with mild Alzheimer's disease and can reduce caregivers' psychiatric symptoms.

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RESUMO -Objetivo: Apresentar resultados preliminares do 'tratamento combinado' (inibidor da acetilcolinesterase + treinamento cognitivo), em um grupo de pacientes com doença de Alzheimer (DA) leve, acompanhados por 7 meses. Método: Seis pacientes com diagnóstico de DA leve, de acordo com critérios diagnósticos da CID-10 e NINCDS-ADRDA, foram submetidos a ensaio clínico aberto com Rivastigmina, 6-12 mg/dia, por 2 meses, seguido por grupo de reabilitação cognitiva semanal, por 5 meses. Os familiares/cuidadores foram atendidos em grupo semanal de suporte e aconselhamento, por 5 meses. Resultados: Ao final do acompanhamento, houve: estabilização ou discreta melhora dos déficits cognitivos e das atividades de vida diária dos pacientes; estabilização ou redução dos níveis de depressão e ansiedade nos pacientes e familiares. Conclusão: O 'tratamento combinado' pode auxiliar na estabilização ou resultar em leve melhora dos déficits cognitivos e funcionais de pacientes com DA leve. As intervenções de suporte e aconselhamento podem reduzir o nível de sintomas psiquiátricos de seus familiares.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: demência, doença de Alzheimer, inibidor da acetilcolinesterase, reabilitação cognitiva, atividades de vida diária, cuidadores. This study aims to show preliminary results of the 'combined treatment' (acetylcholinesterase inhibitor + cognitive training) on a group of mild Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients, followed-up for 7 months. Methods: Six mild AD patients, diagnosed according to ICD-10 and NINCDS-ADRDA criteria, were included on a open trial with Rivastigmine, 6-12 mg/day, for 2 months, followed by a weekly cognitive rehabilitation group, for 5 months. Caregivers were submitted to a weekly group of counseling and support for 5 months. Results: Stabilization or mild improvement of patients' cognitive and activities of daily living deficits were found, besides reduction of patients and caregivers' depressive and anxiety levels. Conclusion: The 'combined treatment' can help on the stabilization or result on a mild improvement of AD patients' cognitive and functional deficits. Support and counseling interventions can reduce the levels of caregivers' psychiatric symptoms. A doença de Alzheimer (DA) é uma doença cerebral degenerativa, caracterizada por perda progressiva da memória e de outras funções cognitivas, que prejudicam o paciente em suas atividades de vida diária e em seu desempenho social e ocupacional. A DA pode ser divida em três fases -leve, moderada e grave -de acordo com o nível de comprometimento cognitivo e o grau de dependência do indivíduo.

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Objective: To present the development of an adapted version of the Boston Naming Test for Portuguese speakers, and to investigate the effects of age, education and gender on both the original and the adapted Boston Naming Test in respect of Brazilian Portuguese speakers. Method: Eighty items, including the 60 original ones and 20 adapted items were administered to 739 healthy Brazilian subjects aged between 6 and 77 years who received 0 to 17 years of education. Results: The coefficients of the General Linear Model estimation suggested that both age and education were statistically significant to predict total scores. In addition, score variances, justified by such predictors, were 41.20% in the original Boston Naming Test against 25.84% in the adapted Boston Naming Test. These results suggest that the scores from the original BNT are more dependent on age and education than those from the adapted Boston Naming Test. Conclusion: These findings demonstrated the suitability of the adapted Boston Naming Test version for the Brazilian population and described provisional norms for the original and adapted Boston Naming Test for Portuguese speakers. Descriptors