New Research Presented at Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease Indicates Alzheimer’s Disease May Lead to Increased Comorbid Conditions and Economic Burden

Honolulu — Janssen Alzheimer Immunotherapy, together with its collaborator on the Alzheimer’s Immunotherapy Program, Pfizer, presented new research this week at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease 2010 (ICAD 2010) from two podium and four poster presentations. This research indicates there may be potential for an increased risk of comorbid conditions, such as seizures, stroke and type 2 diabetes, with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). These studies also provide new findings about the burden of care and costs associated with AD for patients and their caregivers.

“These studies demonstrate the potential toll Alzheimer’s disease can take on patients and their families,” said Michael Grundman, M.D., M.P.H., Vice President, Clinical Development, on behalf of the Alzheimer’s Immunotherapy Program. “The Alzheimer’s Immunotherapy Program is dedicated to advancing research and developing new treatments that may help fight this deadly disease and ease the burden on patients and their caregivers.”

About the Oral and Poster Presentations
Oral #O2-06-04: Alzheimer’s Disease is Associated with Increased Incidence of Seizures Among Patients in the United Kingdom, 1988-2009 (Baker N, et al.)

This retrospective cohort study was designed to estimate the incidence of seizures among AD patients and non-AD patients. The study was conducted using anonymized electronic medical records of 14,838 AD patients aged 50 years or older and 14,838 sex-age-matched non-AD patients from nearly 400 primary practices in the United Kingdom. AD patients were followed for an average of 2.3 years and non-AD patients were followed for 3.4 years.

The findings showed that people with AD have seizures at an annual rate of nearly 1 percent, which is slightly more than 6-fold higher (95 percent CI, 4.9-8.4) than persons of similar age and gender without AD. The study also showed the risk for seizure among those with AD was highest at younger ages and decreased with increasing age. The incident rate of seizures among non-AD patients increased slightly with age. In this study, no safety data related to any particular product were collected. One of the limitations of this study was the inability to assess AD severity. In addition, events recorded in the electronic medical record were not confirmed.

Poster #P3-078: The Incidence of Stroke is Increased Among Patients with Alzheimer’s Disease in the United Kingdom, 1988-2009 (Baker N, et al.)

This retrospective cohort study aimed to estimate the rate of stroke among AD patients and non-AD patients. The study was conducted using anonymized electronic medical records of 13,694 AD patients aged 50 years or older and 13,694 sex-age-matched non-AD patients from nearly 400 United Kingdom primary practices. The patients with AD were followed for an average of 2.3 years and the non-AD patients were followed for an average of 3.4 years.

The study found that the incidence of stroke in patients diagnosed with AD is 1.6 (95 percent CI, 1.4-1.8) times greater than that of non-AD patients. The increased incidence rate of stroke comparing AD patients to non-AD patients was seen in all age groups. Patients with AD and their caregivers should be educated on the signs and symptoms of a stroke. In this study, no safety data related to any particular product were collected. One of the limitations of this study was the inability to assess AD severity. In addition, events recorded in the electronic medical record were not confirmed.

Poster#P3-087: Central Nervous System (CNS) Comorbidities and Concomitant Drug Use in a Medicaid AD Population(Mucha L, et al.)

This is the first multi-state study to use Medicaid records from 2000-2008 to examine the differences in CNS comorbidities and concomitant drug use and costs. A total of 13,927 AD patients were matched to non-AD patients by several key factors, including age, gender and Medicare eligibility status, among others. AD patients qualified for inclusion into the study after their first instance of AD-related dementia and a second AD claim or a prescription for an AD treatment. The primary outcomes measures were medical and pharmacy utilization and costs during the first year.

The study found that a significantly (P