At present, there are no proven preventive therapies for Alzheimer's disease, and no agents are consistently effective in preventing the progression of the disease.
Symptomatic therapy can be quite helpful, especially in the early stages of dementia.
Depression may be a significant psychiatric symptom in Alzheimer's disease patients because it can interfere with a patient's already impaired function. Depression and anxiety can also become problems for the family and care givers. Drugs with anticholinergic effects should be avoided. Usually, treatment is initiated with heterocyclic agents such as nortriptyline, doxepin, or desipramine. Later in the course of disease, severe behavioral disturbances or psychosis may develop.