Dementia clinical trials at UCLA

The primary purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of JNJ-63733657 versus placebo on clinical decline as measured by the Integrated Alzheimer's Disease Rating Scale (iADRS), a composite of cognition and function.

In this study, researchers will learn more about a study drug called BIIB080. The study will focus on participants with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia due to AD. The main question researchers are trying to answer is if BIIB080 can slow the worsening of AD more than placebo. It will focus on what dose of BIIB080 slows worsening of AD the most. To help answer this question, researchers will use the Clinical Dementia Rating-Sum of Boxes, also known as the CDR-SB. - Clinicians use the CDR-SB to measure several categories of dementia symptoms. - The results for each category are added together for a total score. Lower scores are better. Researchers will also learn more about the safety of BIIB080. The study will be split into 2 parts. The 1st part is the Placebo-Controlled Period. The 2nd part is the Long-Term Extension (LTE) Period. The 2nd part of the study will help researchers learn about the long-term safety of BIIB080, and how it affects the participant's daily life, thinking, and memory abilities in the longer term. A description of how the study will be done is given below. - After screening, participants will first receive either a low dose or high dose of BIIB080, or a placebo, as an injection into the fluid around the spinal cord (cerebrospinal fluid). A placebo looks like the study drug but contains no real medicine. - Participants will receive BIIB080 or placebo once every 12 weeks or 24 weeks. - After 76 weeks of treatment in the Placebo-Controlled Period, eligible participants will move onto the Extension Treatment period, which will last 96 weeks. - In the extension period, participants who received placebo will be switched to high dose BIIB080 every 12 or 24 weeks. - Participants may be in the study for up to 201 weeks, or about 4 years. This includes the screening and follow-up periods. - Participants can continue to take certain medications for AD. Participants must be on the same dose of medication for at least 8 weeks before the screening period. - After the screening period, most participants will visit the clinic every 6 weeks.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of escitalopram for agitation in Alzheimer's dementia.

The purpose of this study is to assess the safety, tolerability and effects on behaviour of Syntocinon given intranasally (by a spray into the nostrils) compared to placebo (an inactive saline substance that contains no medication) in participants with frontotemporal dementia/Pick's disease. This study will take place in approximately 15 centres across Canada and the United States. Approximately 112 patients in total will be enrolled in this study. In the first phase we will examine which of three different dosing schedules of oxytocin may be more effective. In the second phase of the study, patients entering the study will be randomized to the oxytocin dosing schedule that appeared most effective in the first phase.

The purpose of this study is to assess which antidepressants work the best in older adults who have treatment-resistant depression (TRD), and to test whether treatment-resistant late life depression is associated with declines in memory and attention and brain structure and function.

The Care Ecosystem is an accessible, remotely delivered team-based dementia care model, designed to add value for patients, providers and payers in complex organizational and reimbursement structures. Care is delivered via the phone and web by unlicensed Care Team Navigators, who are trained and supervised by a team of dementia specialists with nursing, social work, and pharmacy expertise. The evidence base to date suggests that the Care Ecosystem improves outcomes important to people with dementia, caregivers, and payers when delivered in a controlled research environment, including reduced emergency department visits, higher quality of life for patients, lower caregiver depression, and reduced potentially inappropriate medication use (Possin et al., 2019; Liu et al., 2022). The investigators propose a rapid pragmatic trial in 6 health systems currently offering the Care Ecosystem program in geographically and culturally diverse populations. The investigators will leverage technology, delivering care via the phone and web and using electronic health records to monitor quality improvements and evaluate outcomes while maximizing external validity. The investigators will evaluate the effectiveness of the Care Ecosystem on outcomes important to patients, caregivers, healthcare providers, and health systems during the pandemic. By evaluating the real-world effectiveness in diverse health systems that are already providing this model of care, this project will bridge the science-practice gap in dementia care during an unprecedented time of heightened strain on family caregivers, healthcare providers and health systems.

The purpose of this study is to test whether treatment-resistant late life depression is associated with declines in memory and attention and brain structure and function.

This study will enroll participants with idiopathic rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder (RBD), for the purpose of preparing for a clinical trial of neuroprotective treatments against synucleinopathies.