Before prescribing an SSRI for Alzheimer’s-associated agitation, consider referring patients to join the
S-CitAD study
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a devastating disorder, robbing patients of their intellectual abilities
leading to behaviors that severely limit the quality of life for patients and caregivers. One of the most
common syndromes that we observe in these patients is agitation, which can be aggressive or nonaggressive.
Agitation (in the context of AD) is defined by these behaviors—excessive motor activity (such as pacing
and aimless wandering), verbal aggression (such as cursing, shouting, and yelling), and/or physical
aggression (such as hitting, shoving, and slamming doors).
More than 20 sites across the US and Canada
Johns Hopkins University is conducting the Escitalopram for Agitation in Alzheimer’s Disease
(S-CitAD) clinical research study, in clinics across the United States and Canada, to determine if
escitalopram can help people who have AD with agitation, along with providing those patients and their
caregivers with psychosocial counselling to help them deal with practical problems and emotional
consequences of AD.
NIA-sponsored, holistic approach
This is a placebo-controlled, masked, 12-week randomized clinical trial sponsored by the National
Institute on Aging (NIA). The study will look at which patients improve on the study drug with counseling
and which patients improve on counseling alone.
Your patients may be eligible for the S-CitAD clinical study if they:
Have significant agitation;
Have a study caregiver available to attend study visits;
Are
willing to participate in a research study;
Are available for 3 months of study follow-up;
Are
not involved in another clinical trial or study; and
Are able to be treated with escitalopram
(there are simple restrictions on other medications patients may be taking prior to study entry as well).
