Aging and Dementia

Senior woman playing game with caregiver

New Approval of an Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment– July 7, 2023

On July 7, 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave traditional “full” approval to lecanemab-irmb injection (Leqembi™), previously approved in January under the accelerated approval mechanism. Lecanemab is approved for treatment of persons with early Alzheimer’s disease, including persons with mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer’s disease, or mild dementia due to Alzheimer’s disease. This drug is the first drug approved that is proven to slow the clinical progression of Alzheimer’s disease. The drug removes Alzheimer’s plaques from the brain, and consistently slows progression of disease by 27% to 37% depending on the measure used, as shown in a large global phase 3 trial, CLARITY AD, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in late 2022. Lecanemab treatment, which currently is delivered by intravenous infusion every two weeks, does have some risk of side-effects of brain swelling and brain bleeding, and individuals with certain genetic factors have more risk than others. Medicare has announced that it will be providing coverage for this drug, so long as patients allow their practitioners to submit their information in a secure privacy-protected “registry” database, which will allow continued safety assessment of the treatment.

ColumbiaDoctors Neurology Aging and Dementia Practice provides comprehensive, coordinated care for those affected by memory or behavioral disorders, including mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease, Lewy Body disease, Frontotemporal degeneration, Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, and other less common disorders.

Our multidisciplinary team of subspecialty-trained neurologists, neuropsychologists, psychiatrists, genetic counselors, social workers, nurse practitioners, and other health care professionals work together to determine the exact cause of your impairment, and advise you and your family on the best treatment plan for your specific condition.

Conditions We Treat

Alzheimer's Disease
Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
Dementia
Down Syndrome
Frontotemporal Dementia
Huntington’s Disease
Hydrocephalus
Lewy Body Dementia
Memory Disorder
Memory Impairment
Mild Cognitive Impairment
Mixed Dementia
Neurobehavioral Disorders
Neurobehavioral Syndrome
Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus
Parkinson’s Disease Dementia
Rapidly Progressive Dementia
Vascular Dementia
Wernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome

Visit the Center of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease

Visit the Center of Excellence for Huntington’s Disease