Generic diabetes medicines might be helpful in reducing the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, a new extensive German study shows.
Researchers say that the type 2 diabetes drug, pioglitazone, sold as Actos and manufactured by Japan-based Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, prevented the onset of Alzheimer's during the clinical trials.
The German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases examined data collected from German healthcare plans between 2004 and 2010. They followed records of 145,717 patients who were aged 60 and above and did not display any signs of Alzhemeizer's at the start of the study.
Researchers noted that out of these 13,841 people developed the condition in the course of the study. After assessing the effects of the diabetes drug, they found that people who were prescribed the drug had 6 percent reduced risk of the disease compared to those who were not taking the drug.
"The long-term use of pioglitazone reduces the risk of dementia incidence," Anne Fink, a researcher from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases and the trial lead, told Reuters Health.
"It was very important to do this study," commented Ben Wolozin, professor at the Boston University Alzheimer's Disease Center, reports Bloomberg. "However, it's actually almost surprising to me that the lowering of relative risk was so weak."
The study could not exactly pinpoint the reason for the reduced Alzheimer's risk. However, Fink said that the drug might be able to prevent Alzheimer's disease because it lowers inflammation in the central nervous system. The researchers said that there might be other factors influencing the results.
At present, Takeda has an ongoing study with Zinfandel Pharmaceuticals Inc. to examine the possible health benefits of taking low-dose pioglitazone in preventing cognitive decline and impairment in people with genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's. The study, 'Tomorrow,' began last year and will continue to enroll participants until they reach their goal of 5,800 people. Results from this study will be available over the next few years.
The study's findings were presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark.
