Antidepressant drug citalopram could help significantly relieve agitation in patients with Alzheimer's disease, but at the cost of slightly decreasing cognitive function and increasing heart attack risk, according to results of a clinical trial released Tuesday.
However, the drug, sold under the brand names Celexa and Cipramil and also available as a generic medication, might be safer than antipsychotic drugs currently used to treat the condition, according to the study led by Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers that included seven other academic medical centers in the United States and Canada.