Study to find new treatment for common type of dementia

Faculty researchers are taking part in a £1.8million study testing a potential new treatment for Lewy body dementia (LBD).

LBD is the second most common neurodegenerative cause for dementia, behind Alzheimer’s disease. It is a progressive type of dementia that leads to a decline in thinking, reasoning and independent function because of abnormal microscopic deposits that damage brain cells over time.

The new study, which is funded by an NIHR Health Technology Assessment (HTA) grant and led by Newcastle University, will test a combination treatment of memantine and cholinesterase inhibitors.

Memantine is already used to treat moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease but has not yet been proven to help in LBD.

The COmBining memantine And cholinesterase inhibitors in Lewy body dementia treatment Trial (COBALT), is a multi-centre, double blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial examining the clinical impact and cost-effectiveness of memantine augmentation over one year in patients already taking cholinesterase inhibitors.

Dr Jay Amin, Associate Professor in Psychiatry of Older Age, is a co-investigator and lead for the central South coast. He will be working with Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust on the trial and said: “LBD is a progressive and debilitating disease that does not have many treatment options.

We are proud to be one of around 25 sites across the UK and Australia taking part in this important study. We hope we will answer important questions about whether memantine augmentation should be recommended as an add-on treatment for people with LBD.”