Alzheimer's disease medications at Lucas Clinic include prescription acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs) — a class of agents that slow the breakdown of acetylcholine in the brain, partially compensating for the cholinergic deficit that contributes to the memory and cognitive impairment of Alzheimer's dementia. While these medications do not reverse or halt the underlying neurodegeneration, they have demonstrated modest but clinically meaningful improvements in cognition, daily functioning, and behavioural symptoms in clinical trials, and are the established standard of care for mild-to-severe Alzheimer's disease.
The two AChEIs in our Alzheimer's section are donepezil (Aricept) — the most prescribed Alzheimer's medication worldwide — and rivastigmine (Exelon), notable for its dual inhibition of both AChE and BuChE and its preferred transdermal patch formulation with fewer GI side effects. A third class — NMDA receptor antagonists (memantine, Namenda) — is used for moderate-to-severe AD but is not listed here. Newer disease-modifying therapies targeting amyloid (lecanemab/Leqembi, donanemab/Kisunla) have received accelerated FDA approvals but require specialist prescribing and monitoring.