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Effects of rivastigmine transdermal patch and capsule on aspects of clinical global impression of change in Alzheimer's disease: a retrospective analysis
Cummings JL, Ferris SH, Farlow MR, Olin JT, Meng X.. Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders, 2010-05-21
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Background The Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study-Clinical Global Impression of Change (ADCS-CGIC) scale is widely used in Alzheimer trials. It assesses cognition, activities of daily living (ADLs), behavior and global functioning. To advance the understanding of relationships between the ADCS-CGIC and scores from other commonly used tools, this analysis investigated the ability of each domain to measure change. This was a hypothesis-forming study, designed to provide a basis for possible future research. Methods This retrospective analysis used data from a 24-week, randomized, placebo-controlled trial [study ENA713D2320 (IDEAL)] that evaluated rivastigmine patches and capsules in AD patients. Results At week 24, significant treatment effects versus placebo were seen on the ADCS-CGIC cognitive domain with rivastigmine 17.4 mg/24 h patch (p Conclusions The results of this post hoc analysis suggest that the ADCS-CGIC accurately reflects changes in cognitive and functional domains measured by other tools; it captures changes not assessed by domain-specific instruments. Cognitive alterations show greatest correlation with total CGIC. These results may assist in analyzing and interpreting CGIC results in other trials.
Key findings
- Results At week 24, significant treatment effects versus placebo were seen on the ADCS-CGIC cognitive domain with rivastigmine 17.4 mg/24 h patch (p < 0.01), 9.5 mg/24 h patch (p = 0.02) and capsules (p < 0.01); similarly on the ADCS-CGIC ADL domain.
- These results may assist in analyzing and interpreting CGIC results in other trials.
Why it matters
This retrospective analysis of data from a 24-week trial found that the rivastigmine 17.4 mg/24 h patch showed significant treatment effects versus placebo on the cognitive domain of a global impression scale. It is a post hoc analysis about how a rating scale captures change, not evidence that rivastigmine cures or prevents Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 53/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a randomised controlled trial. Scored zero for sample size and effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders: journal h-index 149 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomised 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 | 2010 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| 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 (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 2 / 2 | Randomised and blinded or placebo-controlled (as stated in the record) |
| Times cited | 2 / 7 | Cited 10 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.6 citations a year over 18 year(s) since 2010 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 1.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 1 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Xiangyi Meng: h-index 26 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, Los Angeles: institution h-index 1,923 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 7 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 20502014) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 53 / 100 | — |
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May need a subscription Unpaywall, Europe PMC and OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 10 Oct 2026), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
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APA 7th
Cummings, J. L., Ferris, S. H., Farlow, M. R., Olin, J. T., & Meng, X. (2010). Effects of rivastigmine transdermal patch and capsule on aspects of clinical global impression of change in Alzheimer's disease: a retrospective analysis. Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders. https://doi.org/10.1159/000296073
Vancouver
Cummings JL, Ferris SH, Farlow MR, Olin JT, Meng X. Effects of rivastigmine transdermal patch and capsule on aspects of clinical global impression of change in Alzheimer's disease: a retrospective analysis. Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders. 2010. doi:10.1159/000296073. PMID: 20502014.
BibTeX
@article{cummings2010-20502014,
author = {Cummings, J. L. and Ferris, S. H. and Farlow, M. R. and Olin, J. T. and Meng, X.},
title = {{Effects of rivastigmine transdermal patch and capsule on aspects of clinical global impression of change in Alzheimer's disease: a retrospective analysis}},
journal = {Dementia and geriatric cognitive disorders},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1159/000296073},
pmid = {20502014},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1159/000296073}
}
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