Importance Agitation is common, persistent, and associated with adverse consequences for patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Pharmacological treatment options, including antipsychotics are not satisfactory. Objective The primary objective was to evaluate the efficacy of citalopram for agitation in patients with AD. Key secondary objectives examined effects of citalopram on function, caregiver distress, safety, cognitive safety, and tolerability. Design, Setting and Participants The Citalopram for Agitation in Alzheimer's Disease Study (CitAD) was a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel group trial that enrolled 186 patients with probable AD and clinically significant agitation from eight academic centers in the US and Canada from August 2009 to January 2013. Interventions Participants (n=186) were randomized to receive a psychosocial intervention plus either citalopram (n=94) or placebo (n=92) for 9 weeks. Dose began at 10 mg/d with planned titration to 30 mg/d over 3 weeks based on response and tolerability. Main Outcomes and Measures Primary outcome measures were the Neurobehavioral Rating Scale, agitation subscale (NBRS-A) and the modified Alzheimer Disease Cooperative Study-Clinical Global Impression of Change (mADCS-CGIC) Other outcomes were the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory (CMAI), Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), activities of daily living (ADLs), caregiver distress, cognitive safety (MMSE), and adverse events. Results Participants on citalopram showed significant improvement compared to placebo on both primary outcome measures. NBRS-A estimated treatment difference at week 9 (citalopram minus placebo) was −0.93 [95% CI: −1.80 to −0.06], p = 0.036. mADCS-CGIC results showed 40% of citalopram participants having moderate or marked improvement from baseline compared to 26% on placebo, with estimated treatment effect (odds ratio of being at or better than a given CGIC category) of 2.13 [95% CI 1.23 to 3.69], p = 0.007. Participants on citalopram showed significant improvement on the CMAI, total NPI and caregiver distress scores but not on the NPI agitation subscale, ADLs, or in less use of rescue lorazepam. Worsening of cognition (−1.05 points [95% CI: −1.97 to −0.13], p = 0.026) and QT interval prolongation (18.1 ms [95% CI: 6.1, 30.1], p = 0.004) were seen in the citalopram group. Conclusions and Relevance Among patients with probable Alzheimer's disease and agitation receiving psychosocial intervention, the addition of citalopram compared with placebo significantly reduced agitation and caregiver distress, but cognitive and cardiac adverse effects of citalopram may limit its practical application at the 30 mg/d dose studied in this trial.

Background: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is used to modulate the activity of dysfunctional brain circuits. The safety and efficacy of DBS in dementia is unknown.Objective: To assess DBS of memory circuits as a treatment for patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease (AD).Methods: We evaluated active “on” versus sham “off” bilateral DBS directed at the fornix-a major fiber bundle in the brain’s memory circuit-in a randomized, double-blind trial (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01608061) in 42 patients with mild AD. We measured cognitive function and cerebral glucose metabolism up to 12 months post-implantation.Results: Surgery and electrical stimulation were safe and well tolerated. There were no significant differences in the primary cognitive outcomes (ADAS-Cog 13, CDR-SB) in the “on” versus “off” stimulation group at 12 months for the whole cohort. Patients receiving stimulation showed increased metabolism at 6 months but this was not significant at 12 months. On post-hoc analysis, there was a significant interaction between age and treatment outcome: in contrast to patients <65 years old (n = 12) whose results trended toward being worse with DBS ON versus OFF, in patients≥65 (n = 30) DBS-f ON treatment was associated with a trend toward both benefit on clinical outcomes and a greater increase in cerebral glucose metabolism.Conclusion: DBS for AD was safe and associated with increased cerebral glucose metabolism. There were no differences in cognitive outcomes for participants as a whole, but participants aged≥65 years may have derived benefit while there was possible worsening in patients below age 65 years with stimulation.

Objective: To evaluate the frequency of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder (HAND) in HIV1 individuals and determine whether the frequency of HAND changed over 4 years of follow-up. Methods:The Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS) is a prospective study of gay/bisexual men.Beginning in 2007, all MACS participants received a full neuropsychological test battery and functional assessments every 2 years to allow for HAND classification.

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There are growing concerns about potential delayed, neuropsychiatric consequences (e.g, cognitive decline, mood or anxiety disorders) of sports-related traumatic brain injury (TBI). Autopsy studies of brains from a limited number of former athletes have described characteristic, pathologic changes of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) leading to questions about the relationship between these pathologic and the neuropsychiatric disturbances seen in former athletes. Research in this area will depend on in vivo methods that characterize molecular changes in the brain, linking CTE and other sports-related pathologies with delayed emergence of neuropsychiatric symptoms. In this pilot project we studied former National Football League (NFL) players using new neuroimaging techniques and clinical measures of cognitive functioning. We hypothesized that former NFL players would show molecular and structural changes in medial temporal and parietal lobe structures as well as specific cognitive deficits, namely those of verbal learning and memory. We observed a significant increase in binding of [11C]DPA-713 to the translocator protein (TSPO), a marker of brain injury and repair, in several brain regions, such as the supramarginal gyrus and right amygdala, in 9 former NFL players compared to 9 age-matched, healthy controls. We also observed significant atrophy of the right hippocampus. Finally, we report that these same former players had varied performance on a test of verbal learning and memory, suggesting that these molecular and pathologic changes may play a role in cognitive decline. These results suggest that localized brain injury and repair, indicated by increased [11C]DPA-713 binding to TSPO, may be linked to history of NFL play. [11C]DPA-713 PET is a promising new tool that can be used in future study design to examine further the relationship between TSPO expression in brain injury and repair, selective regional brain atrophy, and the potential link to deficits in verbal learning and memory after NFL play.

Background-Some patients with bipolar disorder (BD) demonstrate neuropsychological deficits even when stable. However, it remains unclear whether these differ qualitatively from those seen in schizophrenia (SZ).

IMPORTANCE Microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system, play an important role in the brain's response to injury and neurodegenerative processes. It has been proposed that prolonged microglial activation occurs after single and repeated traumatic brain injury, possibly through sports-related concussive and subconcussive injuries. Limited in vivo brain imaging studies months to years after individuals experience a single moderate to severe traumatic brain injury suggest widespread persistent microglial activation, but there has been little study of persistent glial cell activity in brains of athletes with sports-related traumatic brain injury. OBJECTIVE To measure translocator protein 18 kDa (TSPO), a marker of activated glial cell response, in a cohort of National Football League (NFL) players and control participants, and to report measures of white matter integrity. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSThis cross-sectional, case-control study included young active (n = 4) or former (n = 10) NFL players recruited from across the United States, and 16 age-, sex-, highest educational level-, and body mass index-matched control participants. This study was conducted at an academic research institution

SUMMARY Background Depression is common in Alzheimer’s disease [AD], and antidepressants are commonly used for its treatment, yet evidence for antidepressant efficacy in this population is lacking. We conducted a multi-center, randomized, placebo-controlled trial titled “Depression in Alzheimer’s Disease-2” (DIADS-2) to assess the efficacy and tolerability of sertraline for depression in AD. Methods One hundred thiry-one participants from 5 U.S. medical centers with mild-to-moderate AD (Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] scores 10–26) and depression of AD were randomized to double-blinded treatment with sertraline (N=67) or placebo (N=64), with a target dosage of 100 mg daily. Efficacy was assessed using logistic regressions and mixed effects models in an intention to treat (ITT) analysis with imputation of missing data. Principal outcome measures were modified Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study-Clinical Global Impression of Change (mADCS-CGIC), change in Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) scores, and remission defined by both mADCS-CGIC score ≤2 and CSDD score ≤ 6. Findings mADCS-CGIC ratings (OR = 1.01 (95% CI: 0.52, 1.97, p=0.98), CSDD scores (median difference at 12 weeks 1.2,[95% CI -1.65, 4.05], p=0.41), and remission at 12 weeks of followup (OR = 2.06, [95% CI - 0.84, 5.04], p=0.11) did not differ between sertraline (N=67) and placebo (N=64). Sertraline-treated patients experienced more adverse events, most notably gastrointestinal and respiratory, than placebo-treated patients. Interpretation Sertraline did not demonstrate efficacy for the treatment depression symptoms in patients with Alzheimer's disease. In addition, its use was associated with an increased incidence of adverse events. Thus, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors may be of limited value for treating depression in AD patients