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I'm a little confused. Mom was given a diagnosis of likely LB, Vascular Dementia, and depression. Main problems are confusion, memory, and hallucinations. She was just started on Aricept. She seems better, even the hallucinations have subsided. Does this drug work this way? Also I am handling all meds and she lives with me now. Is the likely cause of her improvement because I am managing her now? Now the doctor has started her on B vitamins for memory, but said not to expect the other problems to go away. Does this sound correct? Is the B just to prevent further memory loss? Im planning to move mom to AL, and now all of this has me questioning whether she can go home someday as she wants? The doctor did no indicate that mom would improve.

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Hi Owl,
Here's info from The Lewy Body Dementia Association website.

One study indicated that donepezil (Aricept) improves cognitive and neuropsychiatric symptoms in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), while also decreasing caregiver burden. The other demonstrates that people with DLB, who do not demonstrate coexisting Alzheimer’s disease on certain brain imaging tests, are more likely to improve with cholinesterace inhibitors treatment (drugs like Aricept). Patients receiving donepezil (Aricept) demonstrated improvements in several neuropsychiatric domains affected by DLB, specifically delusions, hallucinations and cognitive fluctuations. Patients receiving 5 or 10 mg donepezil showed greater improvement in the majority of the cognitive and behavioral measures. MMSE score improved by 2.0 to 3.8 points in those receiving donepezil over placebo, which is a larger difference than that reported in other studies of cholinestetace inhibitors in DLB, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease dementia.

Now from Helpguide.org;
Dementia could be a symptom of pernicious anemia, a rare condition caused by low levels of vitamin B12. In people with pernicious anemia, the bone marrow produces red blood cells that are both larger and less numerous than normal.
In older people, the first symptoms of pernicious anemia are often confusion, slowness, irritability, and apathy.
A B-12 deficiency usually occurs because an individual can’t absorb the vitamin from food. Fortunately, B12 injections, if started early, can remedy the deficiency and alleviate the symptoms of pernicious anemia.

Just a guess but I'm thinking the docs are covering all bases and the B-12 is part of that.
How wonderful that the Aricept is working for her.
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