The effects of tacrine on regional cerebral blood flow in Alzheimer’s disease

Abstract:

Regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) was studied in nine patients with Alzheimer's disease before and after treatment with tacrine. A small but significant improvement in cognitive functioning on the drug was not accompanied by significant changes in rCBF for the group as a whole. However, when the analysis was repeated excluding the only patient who showed no clinical response to the drug a significant increase in rCBF was seen to the right posterior temporal area. This preliminary study shows that some caution is necessary when interpreting studies of rCBF as changes in cognitive functioning may not always be accompanied by parallel changes in rCBF. Separate analysis of drug responders and non‐responders may be a fruitful area for further research. Copyright © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.