No Benefit from Memantine for Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is a pathologically and clinically heterogeneous dementing disorder characterized by progressive decline in behavioral and language function. No FDA-approved disease-specific medications or disease-modifying therapies for FTLD are currently available. Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors, approved to treat symptomatic Alzheimer disease, are not recommended for FTLD. In clinical practice, the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor antagonist memantine is often prescribed for FTLD on the basis of anecdotal evidence and open-label trial findings of a modest benefit in mitigating behavioral symptoms (e.g., Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord 2009; 23:211).

In a new, manufacturer-funded, double-blind trial, researchers randomize…