MD hesitant to prescribe meds for dementia

@dez2 Gosh, you’re in a pickle. The doctor won’t prescribe medications because he feels that they have little value? Have you challenged him and said that you and your husband would like to try anyway. If the FDA considers them safe, then why can’t you try them?
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dementia/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20352019
This information from the Mayo Clinic may be of help.
Could you ask your doctor for a referral to a neurologist?

Yes, waiting to hear from him after indicating that we want to give them a shot anyway. Had not thought of the FDA angle so thanks for that.

My wife has early stage Alzheimer's. Her neurologist prescribed 5mg donepezil and it noticeably helped her short term memory. We know it's not a cure but it helps her quality of life for the time being. If your gerontologist is still resistant, there's no reason why you couldn't also consult a neurologist.

My husband has lbd. His neuro dr started him on 5 mg donapezil and he just know upped it to 10 mg. We dont know how much it helps for sure. He has trouble staying on task and remembering. So far it has gotten worse yet. He al is on an antidepressent esitalopram. He started 5 mg. It helped at first. Then some of his anger issues started reappearing. He is now on 10 mg. This is first week. So far going ok.

My

My LO was pres

My LO doctor prescribed Donzepil for him. The only thing it did was cau

My LO doctor prescribed Donzepil for him. It caused severe diarrhea and runny nose and did nothing to help his dementia. He does take Zoft generic which helps his anxiety and depression.

My husband took Donzepil in the early days when he was diagnosed with MCI. I don’t know if it helped or not but things stayed stable for a couple years. When he started with actual dementia symptoms his PCP prescribed a very low dose of Seroquel. It had to be increased a couple of times within a couple of months. When his agitation got really bad (no aggression or harmful behavior) and he would stay awake all night doing things over and over and over and couldn’t sleep at all. After a trip to ER where he ripped IV’s out of his arm and had to be restrained, Risperidone was prescribed after they admitted him to the hospital for a week, and tried different medications. There was a huge improvement. He slept all night and was much calmer and acted more normally, even though the dementia increased over time.

Do you have a solid diagnosis for your husband’s dementia? I ask because my husband has Lewy Body dementia. In his case, drugs can cause the disease to become worse. A very few drugs can be prescribed for symptoms, i.e. , the patient has anxiety about hallucinations, etc. So I would seek a firm diagnosis first. Jan