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Papers of the Week


2021 Feb 22


Cochrane Database Syst Rev


2

Cholinesterase inhibitors for vascular dementia and other vascular cognitive impairments: a network meta-analysis.

Authors

Battle CE, Abdul-Rahim AH, Shenkin SD, Hewitt J, Quinn TJ
Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021 Feb 22; 2:CD013306.
PMID: 33704781.

Abstract

Vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) describes a broad spectrum of cognitive impairments caused by cerebrovascular disease, ranging from mild cognitive impairment to dementia. There are currently no pharmacological treatments recommended for improving either cognition or function in people with VCI. Three cholinesterase inhibitors (donepezil, galantamine, and rivastigmine) are licenced for the treatment of dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. They are thought to work by compensating for reduced cholinergic neurotransmission, which is also a feature of VCI. Through pairwise comparisons with placebo and a network meta-analysis, we sought to determine whether these medications are effective in VCI and whether there are differences between them with regard to efficacy or adverse events.