Effectiveness and safety of traditional Chinese medicine for alzheimer's disease (AD)

Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia, affecting over 5 million North Americans. In its early stages, AD affects predominantly short-term memory and language ability, with progressive changes in cognition, function, mood and behavior, resulting in increased caregiver burden. Purpose: This presentation aims to provide a review on the clinical efficacy and safety of Traditional Chinese Medicine in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease Methods: We performed a literature search of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) through November 2012 with subject numbers greater than 10 from the multiple databases of PubMed, Google Scholar and VIP. Safety and adverse event reports were also reviewed. Results: Twelve articles met the inclusion criteria. Three RCTs studied acupuncture as an independent treatment modality; two RCTs assessed the effectiveness of acupuncture on cognitive function compared with drug therapy, third study compared with sham acupuncture. Their results suggested no significant effect in favor of acupuncture [p = 0.15; p=0.49; p>0.01]. Of the two RCTs that tested acupuncture for activities of daily living (ADL), One RCT reported favorable effects, while the other failed to do so. Traditional Chinese Herbs have also been assessed for their clinical efficacy with limited favorable evidence in seven studies. However, there were many limitations in these trials. Conclusion: Based on our review, we conclude that TCM can be a useful treatment for AD compared to conventional medicine or placebo. However, the quality of these trials was poor and in comparison to pharmacological/non-pharmacological treatments there is inconclusive or limited evidence.