ARICEPT Reviews (DONEPEZIL HYDROCHLORIDE)Average Rating: 1.7 (210 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare ARICEPT with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by length of time drug was taken from shortest to longest duration (reviews with no time reported listed first). Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) |
More on ARICEPT: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR ARICEPT | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 5 | none so far,seem to feel better thinking more carely,memory improved | Hope it keep on working!!!! | F | 74 | 5mg 1X day | 10/14/2010 | 3 | cognitive decline | I am a counselor and work with elderly adults who take Aricept on a weekly basis. I work with one gentleman who was having some behavioral difficulties while taking it. He also had behavioral difficulties before taking it. His physician held his Aricept for 7 days and behavior improved. It was therefore discontinued. | It's important to consider that this man also began eating more (adequate amounts) during this time, per his wife's report. This may have been a confounding factor. Furthermore, I've talked to family members who are dissatisfied that Aricept does not improve memory/cognitive status. Current research however, indicates Aricept does NOT normally improve memory performance. Aricept DOES, however, delay the advancement of cognitive decline caused by Alzheimer's Dementia and some other forms of dementia. I have been told overwhelmingly that while family members don't notice Aricept IMPROVING cognitive performance, they DO notice that their loved ones decline much quicker once they discontinue use of Aricept. This makes sense, because it is very consistent with current research findings. It's also important to know that physicians don't always tell patients about behavioral side effects of Aricept because they are pretty unusual. In most cases I've seen, benefits outweigh the side effects experienced from Aricept use. It's also important to note that people who are offering things like Xanax, Klonopin, Valium, and/or Ativan for depressed mood are offering the wrong medicine for the wrong symptom. Xanax and the others are called benzodiazapines and are primarily intended for treatment of anxiety (nervousness), not depression. They can also make people groggy and elderly people are more sensitive to medications in general. If your loved one is taking a benzodiazapine and | M | 29 | 10 mg 1X day | 3/24/2011 | 2 | some memory loss | insomnia and nightmares, | I do have parkinson and hypertion | M | 65 | | 2/3/2010 | 2 | Dementia or Alzheimer's | My husband was prescribed Aricept probably five years ago. He has had garbled speech, many times unable to complete a thought or sentence. He has had extreme stomach pains on occasions. Told his primary care physician about this, and she didn't seem to know the cause. After reading comments on here, am wondering if it is caused by the Aricept. He would sit at times and just stare at the floor (or nothing). If he knew someone was coming to visit (even family members), he would say he would leave because he didn't know them. His appetite has dwindled, especially at home, although he eats well most of the time when we eat out. He has become irrational and has told me that some men had told him some things about me, like I was out partying or even worse, and he would ask me if I was. Always wanting to go "home to Buffalo," even started for the door one night to go, even said he would walk there. We live in Indiana. Attempted to use a sledgehammer to break the patio door | M | 79 | 10 mg. 1X day | 3/7/2012 | 1 | Alzheimer's | My mother was diagnosed with Alheimer's soon after a poor recovery from knee replacement surgery. The diagnosis was early stage and mild and immediately put on Aricept. In my opinion, that's when the decline began rapidly. My mother died last August after a two week severe decline. Sleeping most of 24 hrs of a day. Believing that dehydration was making her so sick in the last week, she was taken to the ER. She had developed ulcers of the esophagus and seriously in the stomach. She had never had any ulcer or stomach problems in her life. She developed sepsis and died. I strongly believe that the side effect of ulcers was not monitered closely. Beware. If you are on this drug or if you are family of a patient please, please have side effect checked. | F | | 4/20/2009 | 1 | Right after my husband (with vascular dementia) had his dosage upped from 10 mg. he began having facial numbness, was confused weak, lethargic and had severe balance problems. | I stopped the aricept,, which seemed to anger the doctor, but he was having such a bad reaction to it I didn't think it was worth it. Neither did he. This doctor now wants him back on it and says he still thinks he has alzheimers, although the neurologist didn't seem to think so, nor our family practioner. I am at a loss as to what to do as this is one of the few doctors I can get him to see. He thinks all others are "quacks" due to his disease. | F | 74 | 20 mg 1X day | 11/2/2013 | 1 | Alzheimer's | HORRIBLE NIGHTMARES. | This has to be the worst drug experience I've ever had, & that's saying a lot. I've just woken up from the final dosage I'll ever take, soaked in sweat, & having to yell out loud to break away from sleep paralysis. Bad dreams started from the first time I took the drug. It was immediately apparent that the Aricept was the problem, because the dreams were so awful & vivid--I could remember every single thing, & that has gotten less common as I've gotten older; only after I took the Aricept did my bad dreams start. (I am 63.) I really tried to give the drug a chance, but am TOO THROUGH. I just woke up from dreaming, for the second time since I took the drug, that a man was trying to rape me. I could feel his hot breath & the heat coming from his body. I don't dream things like this or watch horror movies. This morning I was able to finally wrench myself from the paralysis, & the almost total blindness that was in my dream was gone too. I had kept trying to move my hand to get what was impeding my vision to LEAVE, but I could only see what was in the middle of my field of vision, & there was a jagged blackness all around that, & I was unable to move my hand for what seemed like forever. Every night since I went on Aricept I have had varying degrees of nightmares, but wanted to give the medication a chance. NO MORE. I don't think I have Alzheimer's AT ALL. I think I have been drugged into all of the symptoms. I am gradually stopping ALL psychotr | F | 63 | 10 mg. 1X day | 6/27/2015 | 1 | my husband | when increasing from 5 mg to 10 mg - terrible results - confusion, sleepiness, increased dementia | M | 73 | 10mg 1X day | 6/2/2016 | 3 | MCI/to Early Onset Alzheimer's 3 | It helps me stay calmer and with accepting my recent diagnoses of early onset Alheimers! Dad got it around the same age and didn't go Home to Heaven till he was 83! Life is different for sure but.... ALIVE!👌🙏😘 | F | 62 | 1 days | 1/20/2017 | 3 | Memory Loss due to Head Injuries | -Very- vivid dreams. No nausea or vomiting. | Greetings. I'm a 33 yr old man, in great shape, but have suffered a number of head injuries in the past due to my occupation, military background and sports. I am suffering from memory loss, which seems to get progressively worse every year. My neurologist gave me some Aricept, and I took my first dose last night. I did not suffer any nausea or vomiting, although I did have -very- vivid dreams. This was not mentioned in the side effects; they were not nightmares, and I was aware that I was dreaming, but they were usually vivid, and seemed to last the entire night. Hope that this helps. Regards, - J | M | 33 | 1 days | 12/30/2009 | 1 | Started early in mild memory loss- | Length 19 days estimate- from a functional adult to nonfunctional as if a switch was flipped to psychotic, vacant personality, loss of bladder control, speech and movements slowed, not knowing where he was, agitation, fixating on numbers and colors, and that batteries would start fire in house, electrical problems in house, was handling bank account | Unable to change length of time, also aggressive behavior scattered in. Definitely a puzzle Week of onset he repeated " I don't understand what is happening to my brain." Would like to hear from others with similar experience | M | 77 | 1 days 5 mg | 1/29/2017 | 1 | Cognitive | My father is taking this thing of horrid pill and he's much worse, I could see a decline within the first few days he went from being able to have a conversation which was more switched on to bring confused & vacant! So it made him much worse but when we complained about it at the memory clinic they were still persistent that he stay on it, now he's having blood pressure probs which can be a fatal syndrome side affect to this drug.. it does not suit everyone so now he's very unwell at the moment feeling fainty so I'm insisting he comes off it as a trial run to see if he's much better within 5 days - hate this drug it turns them into a zombie duscusting what tge medical world are doing to older ppl definately seen a decline in my father nothing positive to say about donopezil and the worse thing about it NO ONE LISTENS !!!!! | Duscusting! | M | 1 days 5 mg | 3/11/2017 | 1 | The person who made comment number 4 must have close ties to the pharmaceutical companies or is just too out of it to be taking care of anyone. Did you not read that the patients' condition worsened extremely while on the drug and then improved when off the drug? How's that "worth a try"? You know what works for many? Coconut oil Two tablespoons per day and has many other health benefits including maintaining healthy cholesterol levels. You can easily research it and that's worth a try. I know folks who took Aracept and it was a nightmare. | 1 days | 3/13/2016 | 1 | Mom took it for severe dementia | Extreme nausea dizziness vomiting loss of appetite loopy leg cramping disorientation puffy face | It should be recommended that people take half dose as this drug is strong. After 12 hours she still feels out of it. | F | 78 | 1 days 1X day | 9/6/2020 | 1 | Slight dementia | Babbling, severe memory loss, couldn't string two sentences together whereas she was coherent the day before. | This medication was given to my 90 year old mother in the hospital for memory loss, which, in a five minute interview the neurologist diagnosed as dementia. Within 24 hours she was babbling like a baby and could not string 2 sentences together. I ordered her off of it immediately. | F | 90 | 1 days | 1/26/2008 | 1 | dementia | started my mother on aricept at six oclock this morning, my daughter just went to the house to take her to lunch and feed the ducks, mom did not want her to touch her, said she did not know who she was, crying and very upset, said she did not know anyone, did not even recognize her caregiver, did not want to bathe, told my daughter to get as much food in her as possible to lessen the effects of the drug, will not be giving it to her again. Her usual is to lay in bed almost all day, seems depressed, give her xanax for that she also take parkinsons meds, namenda, reflux meds, celexa, crestor and trazadone for sleep. will probably bunk with her tonight to keep an eye on her, she is really frightened and combative. | This is really scary that a medicine could have this bad of side effects in just a few hours, feel very sorry for people who are taking this and are alone, very frightening. I really feel badly about giving it to my mom, was hoping for some help with memory, would rather she be forgetful than frightened and combative | F | 83 | 1 days 5mg 1X day | 3/22/2011 | 1 | mild dementia | My 81 year old mother, who I really love, is always up at 8 a.m. to eat her cereal and watch TV, every morning, and she goes on walks up the street several times per day. She was prescribed Aricept 10 mg. and took her first dose at 7:45 p.m. on 1/1/2011. Since Sunday morning she has been having very severe side effects. Labored breathing, loose bowels--not stool, profuse sweating, and she has been so tired she cannot open her eyes for more than a couple of seconds. She had the pill at 7:45 pm on Saturday January 1 before bed and now she is still sleeping and sweating profusely and cannot walk. I can tell she is dreaming as she is talking in her sleep and reaching for something. Other side effects slurred speech, disoriented as to where she is, and what she should do next. | This drug is VERY VERY strong and I would recommend to never give an 81 year old 10 mg dose initially. Wish my mom luck to wake up soon please. | F | 81 | 1 days 10 mg 1X day | 1/4/2011 | 1 | mild dementia | This is an update to the 81-year old female entry on 1/3, added on 1/4. My Mom has died from side effects it seems experienced by this drug aricept. She went into hospital on 1/4 and died on 1/11/2011. Before taking this drug she was normal and okay as found by physical exam and complete blood test taken on 12/29/2010. | F | 81 | 1 days 10 mg 1X day | 1/16/2011 | 4 | mild memory problems, TIAs | Headaches, fatigue, vivid dreams. I think the memory is better, seems sharper, though I still do strange things occasionally, like coming to work an hour early this morning. Get really tired as the day goes on and cannot seem to stay awake beyond 8 pm. Do sleep really good, and the dreams are not as strange as they were the 1st week or two. Note: my mother had AD, probably was early-onset. | F | 59 | 2 days 5 mg | 5/7/2015 | 1 | dementia | Family doctor put me on 5mg Aricept (my request-memory problems due to traumatic brain injury 5 years ago). Now MRI shows dementia. Last week began 10mg Aricept. After 2 days of the 10mg - I had a traumatic episode the second day where I thought I had picked up rent money from a unit I own. Then I couldn't find the money...looked everywhere. Guess what? I never picked up the money. But I was sure I did. Will deal with the memory problems without drugs after that episode. | F | 60 | 2 days 10mg 1X day | 8/11/2014 |
ARICEPT (DONEPEZIL HYDROCHLORIDE): Donepezil is used to treat confusion (dementia) related to Alzheimer's disease. It does not cure Alzheimer's disease, but it may improve memory, awareness, and the ability to function. This medication is an enzyme blocker that works by restoring the balance of natural substances (neurotransmitters) in the brain. FDA Approval Date: 1996-11-25 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)