Insulin Nose Spray Improves Memory in Alzheimer's Patients

Squirting insulin deep into the nose can improve memory in some Alzheimer's patients, The New York Times reported on September 12. The study, published online in Archives of Neurology, included 104 subjects. Those receiving 20 miligrams of insulin spray twice a day for four months experienced memory improvement, whereas those getting a saline solution spray did not.

A number of Alzheimer scientists, however, believe that if Alzheimer's is going to be effectively treated, it will be necessary to treat it long before symptoms become blatant. The reason is that research has shown that by the time individuals meet clinical criteria for Alzheimer's, they have already experienced years of accelerated cognitive decline.

Learn more about the earliest signs of Alzheimer's in Psychiatric News at http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/content/46/9/18.2.full.

And for more information about Alzheimer's in general, see The American Psychiatric Publishing Textbook of Alzheimer Disease and Other Dementias. Purchasing information is posted at www.appi.org/SearchCenter/Pages/SearchDetail.aspx?ItemID=62278.

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