A novel visual short‐term memory task differentiates MCI and Alzheimer’s patients from healthy ageing

Toniolo, Sofia; Maio, Maria Raquel; Tabi, Younes Adam; Slavkova, Elitsa; Plant, Olivia; Saleh, Youssuf; Attaallah, Bahaaeddin; Idris, Imran; Peixoto, João Pedro Fernandes; Preul, Christoph; Srowig, Annie; Joedecke, Steffen; Butler, Chris; Thompson, Sian; Manohar, Sanjay; Finke, Kathrin

doi:10.1002/alz.043006

Cited by 2 publications

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“…17,18,19,20,21,22,23 This task is sensitive to early signs of working memory deficits in individuals with hippocampal dysfunction such as patients with limbic encephalitis, 17 previous temporal lobe lobectomy, 23 familial Alzheimer's AD, 18,22 late-onset sporadic AD 19,21 and subjects at risk of developing AD. 19,20 The OMT can detect early impairment in memory binding even when overall performance is still intact. 17,23 During the OMT, participants were presented with either one (Fractals 1) or two (Fractals 2) fractals located randomly on the black screen (Figure 2).…”

Section: "What Was Where?" Oxford Memory Task -Primary Outcome Measurementioning

confidence: 99%

Safety, tolerability and efficacy outcomes of the Investigation of Levetiracetam in Alzheimer’s Disease (ILiAD) trial

Sen,

Toniolo,

Tai

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Objective: To assess whether the antiseizure medication levetiracetam may improve cognition in individuals with Alzheimer's disease who have not previously experienced a seizure. Methods: We performed a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study in individuals with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease. Electroencephalography was performed at baseline and those with active epileptiform discharges were excluded. Eligible participants were randomised to placebo for 12 weeks or an active arm of oral levetiracetam (4 weeks up-titration to levetiracetam 500 mg twice daily, 4 weeks maintained on this dose followed by 4 weeks down-titration to nil). Participants then crossed over to the other arm. The primary outcome was change in cognitive function assessed by the Oxford Memory Task, a task sensitive to hippocampal memory binding. Secondary outcomes included tolerability, other neuropsychological scales and general questionnaires. Results: Recruitment numbers were severely limited owing to restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic at the time of the study. Eight participants completed both arms of the study (mean age 68.4 years [SD=9.2]; 5 females [62.5%]). No participants withdrew from the study and there was no significant difference between reported side-effects in the active levetiracetam or placebo arm. Measures of mood and quality of life were also not significantly different between the two arms based on participant or carer reports. In limited data analysis, there was no statistically significant difference between participants in the active levetiracetam and placebo arm on the memory task. Significance: This pilot study demonstrates that levetiracetam was well tolerated in individuals with Alzheimer's disease, who do not have a history of seizures, and has no detrimental effect on mood or quality of life. Larger studies are needed to assess whether levetiracetam may have a positive effect on cognitive function in subsets of individuals with Alzheimer's disease.

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Section: "What Was Where?" Oxford Memory Task -Primary Outcome Measurementioning

confidence: 99%

Safety, tolerability and efficacy outcomes of the Investigation of Levetiracetam in Alzheimer’s Disease (ILiAD) trial

Sen,

Toniolo,

Tai

et al. 2024

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Safety, tolerability, and efficacy outcomes of the Investigation of Levetiracetam in Alzheimer's disease (ILiAD) study: a pilot, double‐blind placebo‐controlled crossover trial

Sen,

Toniolo,

Tai

et al. 2024

Epilepsia Open

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ObjectiveTo assess whether the antiseizure medication levetiracetam may improve cognition in individuals with Alzheimer's disease who have not previously experienced a seizure.MethodsWe performed a randomized, double‐blind, placebo‐controlled crossover pilot study in individuals with mild‐to‐moderate Alzheimer's disease. Electroencephalography was performed at baseline and those with active epileptiform discharges were excluded. Eligible participants were randomized to placebo for 12 weeks or an active arm of oral levetiracetam (4 weeks up‐titration to levetiracetam 500 mg twice daily, 4 weeks maintained on this dose followed by 4 weeks down‐titration to nil). Participants then crossed over to the other arm. The primary outcome was change in cognitive function assessed by the Oxford Memory Task, a task sensitive to hippocampal memory binding. Secondary outcomes included tolerability, other neuropsychological scales, and general questionnaires.ResultsRecruitment numbers were severely limited owing to restrictions from the COVID‐19 pandemic at the time of the study. Eight participants completed both arms of the study (mean age 68.4 years [SD = 9.2]; 5 females [62.5%]). No participants withdrew from the study and there was no significant difference between reported side effects in the active levetiracetam or placebo arm. Measures of mood and quality of life were also not significantly different between the two arms based on participant or carer reports. In limited data analysis, there was no statistically significant difference between participants in the active levetiracetam and placebo arm on the memory task.SignificanceThis pilot study demonstrates that levetiracetam was well tolerated in individuals with Alzheimer's disease who do not have a history of seizures and has no detrimental effect on mood or quality of life. Larger studies are needed to assess whether levetiracetam may have a positive effect on cognitive function in subsets of individuals with Alzheimer's disease.Plain Language SummaryAbnormal electrical activity within the brain, such as is seen in seizures, might contribute to memory problems in people with dementia. We completed a clinical trial to see if an antiseizure medication, levetiracetam, could help with memory difficulties in people with Alzheimer's disease (the most common cause of dementia). In this pilot study, we could not prove whether levetiracetam helped memory function. We did show that the drug is safe and well tolerated in people with dementia who have not had a seizure. This work, therefore, offers a platform for future research exploring antiseizure medications in people with dementia.

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A novel visual short‐term memory task differentiates MCI and Alzheimer’s patients from healthy ageing

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

Safety, tolerability and efficacy outcomes of the Investigation of Levetiracetam in Alzheimer’s Disease (ILiAD) trial

Safety, tolerability and efficacy outcomes of the Investigation of Levetiracetam in Alzheimer’s Disease (ILiAD) trial

Safety, tolerability, and efficacy outcomes of the Investigation of Levetiracetam in Alzheimer's disease (ILiAD) study: a pilot, double‐blind placebo‐controlled crossover trial

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