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Cerebrolysin in Alzheimer's disease: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with a neurotrophic agent
Panisset M, Gauthier S, Moessler H, Windisch M, Cerebrolysin Study Group.. Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996), 2002-07-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Unlabelled Cerebrolysin (Cere) is a compound with neurotrophic activity. It has been shown to be effective in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in earlier trials. In this multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study, patients were injected intravenously with placebo or 30 mL Cere five days per week for four weeks. Effects on cognition and global function were evaluated with the Alzheimer Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-Cog) and the Clinicians Interview-based Impression of Change with Caregiver Input scale (CIBIC+) 4, 12, 24 weeks after the beginning of the injections. 192 patients were enrolled, 95 were randomized to placebo, and 97 to Cere. At baseline, there was a significant difference between groups for age, age of onset of dementia, and the number of patients with hallucinations. At week 12 there was a significant difference on the CIBIC+ (p = 0.033) in favor of Cere. The number of CIBIC+ responders (score Conclusions Cere treatment was well tolerated and resulted in significant improvements in the global score two months after the end of active treatment.
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APA 7th
Panisset, M., Gauthier, S., Moessler, H., Windisch, M., & Cerebrolysin Study Group. (2002). Cerebrolysin in Alzheimer's disease: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with a neurotrophic agent. Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/s007020200092
Vancouver
Panisset M, Gauthier S, Moessler H, Windisch M, Cerebrolysin Study Group. Cerebrolysin in Alzheimer's disease: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with a neurotrophic agent. Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996). 2002. doi:10.1007/s007020200092. PMID: 12111446.
BibTeX
@article{panisset2002-12111446,
author = {Panisset, M. and Gauthier, S. and Moessler, H. and Windisch, M. and {Cerebrolysin Study Group}},
title = {{Cerebrolysin in Alzheimer's disease: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial with a neurotrophic agent}},
journal = {Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996)},
year = {2002},
doi = {10.1007/s007020200092},
pmid = {12111446},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s007020200092}
}
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Key findings
- At baseline, there was a significant difference between groups for age, age of onset of dementia, and the number of patients with hallucinations.
- At week 12 there was a significant difference on the CIBIC+ (p = 0.033) in favor of Cere.
- The number of CIBIC+ responders (score Conclusions Cere treatment was well tolerated and resulted in significant improvements in the global score two months after the end of active treatment.
Why it matters
In this trial of 192 patients, those given Cerebrolysin showed a significant difference on a global rating scale at week 12 in favor of the treatment, and the authors report significant improvements in the global score two months after active treatment ended. The groups differed significantly at baseline in age, age of dementia onset, and number of patients with hallucinations, which limits how the results can be interpreted.
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Study details
- Participants192
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 57/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a randomized controlled trial. Scored zero for effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996)) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Journal of Neural Transmission: journal h-index 167 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomized controlled trial (from PubMed type “Randomized Controlled Trial”) |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2002 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 192 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomized / blinded | 2 / 2 | Randomized and blinded or placebo-controlled (as stated in the record) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 60 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 1 / 5 | 2.3 citations a year over 26 year(s) since 2002 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 3 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Manfred Windisch: h-index 42 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | McGill University: institution h-index 1,373 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 12111446) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 57 / 100 | — |
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