TY - JOUR
T1 - Treatment of the symptoms of Huntington's disease
T2 - Preliminary results comparing aripiprazole and tetrabenazine
AU - Brusa, Livia
AU - Orlacchio, Antonio
AU - Moschella, Vincenzo
AU - Iani, Cesare
AU - Bernardi, Giorgio
AU - Mercuri, Nicola Biagio
PY - 2009/1/15
Y1 - 2009/1/15
N2 - Aripiprazole (AP), a dopamine (DA) D2 receptor partial agonist, has recently been used to reduce schizophrenic symptoms, while tetrabenazine (TBZ), a DA depletor, has been used to treat hyperkinesias in Huntington's disease (HD). The aim of this study is to define the role of AP on chorea, motor performance, and functional disability, and to compare the effects of AP vs. TBZ in a small study of six patients with HD. Both AP and TBZ increased the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS) chorea score in a similar way. However, AP caused less sedation and sleepiness than TBZ and was better tolerated by the patients on the trial. Moreover, AP showed a slight but not significant improvement of depression in the patients as compared to TBZ. A larger group of patients and a longer period of observation are an important prerequisite for further evaluations of AP's therapeutic use.
AB - Aripiprazole (AP), a dopamine (DA) D2 receptor partial agonist, has recently been used to reduce schizophrenic symptoms, while tetrabenazine (TBZ), a DA depletor, has been used to treat hyperkinesias in Huntington's disease (HD). The aim of this study is to define the role of AP on chorea, motor performance, and functional disability, and to compare the effects of AP vs. TBZ in a small study of six patients with HD. Both AP and TBZ increased the Unified Huntington's Disease Rating Scale (UHDRS) chorea score in a similar way. However, AP caused less sedation and sleepiness than TBZ and was better tolerated by the patients on the trial. Moreover, AP showed a slight but not significant improvement of depression in the patients as compared to TBZ. A larger group of patients and a longer period of observation are an important prerequisite for further evaluations of AP's therapeutic use.
KW - Aripiprazole
KW - Huntington's disease
KW - Neuroleptics
KW - Tetrabenazine
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=61449249292&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=61449249292&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1002/mds.22376
DO - 10.1002/mds.22376
M3 - Article
C2 - 19170197
AN - SCOPUS:61449249292
VL - 24
SP - 126
EP - 129
JO - Movement Disorders
JF - Movement Disorders
SN - 0885-3185
IS - 1
ER -