Why?  Antibiotics has shown to help alzheimer patients.  

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Posted on Tue, Mar. 09, 2004  

Science says: Alzheimers and antibiotics

What the researchers asked: Scientists six years ago suggested that a
common
bacteria that causes respiratory infections may also contribute to the
development of Alzheimers disease. But subsequent studies of brain
chemistry of
Alzheimer's patients were inconclusive. A team of Canadian researchers
asked
whether giving antibiotics that kill this bacteria to patients with
mild or
moderate Alzheimers disease would affect their cognitive function.

What they found: Half of the 101 patients in the study received daily
doses of
two antibiotics, the other half placebo for three months. Neither the
patients
nor the researchers knew who received what. Patients underwent
cognitive tests
at three, six, and 12 months, the researchers report in the March
Journal of
the American Geriatrics Society. At six months, those who took the
drugs
performed better on these tests than those on placebo and at three
months they
exhibited less dysfunctional behavior, suggesting the antibiotics at
least had
a temporary impact.

What it means to you: Geriatricians arent likely to start treating
Alzheimers
with antibiotics tomorrow, but these results support the idea that
there could
be a bacterial component to the disease. While more research is needed
before
treatment with antibiotics becomes standard of care with Alzheimer's
patients,
the studys authors note that slowing the progression of the disease
even for
half a year may buy time to keep an Alzheimers patient at home.

http://www.worldhealth.net/p/230.html

Antibiotic Combo May Delay Mental Decline of Alzheimer`s Patient


Results of a recent study suggest that a combination of two commonly
used
antibiotics could help to slow down the mental decline of Alzheimer's
patients.
The study of 101 Alzheimer's sufferers revealed that those treated
with the
antibiotics doxycycline and rifampin for three months had
significantly less
mental decline than those given a placebo. Professor Mark Loeb of
McMaster
University in Ontario, Canada, and colleagues found that the
protective effect
of the antibiotic combination was similar to that achieved with
treatment using
cholinesterase inhibitors like Aricept and Exelon. Cholinesterase
inhibitors
are currently the only class of drugs approved for treating
Alzheimer's
disease, however only about half of Alzheimer's patients respond well
to the
drugs. Loeb suspects that the antibiotics may work by interfering with
the
buildup of the amyloid plaques that are a hallmark of Alzheimer's.
However, he
adds that it is also possible that the anti-inflammatory effects of
the
antibiotics may play a major role in their effectiveness.

SOURCE/REFERENCE: Reported by www.reutershealth.com on the 9th October
2003.