David A. Loewenstein, Ph.D.

Development of New Cognitive and Functional Rehabilitation Interventions for Patients with Early Alzheimer's Disease

Cognitive rehabilitation has been shown to be an effective treatment for a variety of neurological disorders including traumatic brain injury and stroke. There has been a paucity of research investigating the utility of cognitive rehabilitation in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). In this investigation, we propose the first attempt to directly compare the efficacy of a new, systematically applied Cognitive Rehabilitation (CR) program versus a new Functional Enhancement (FE) program that uses procedural motor learning to emphasize the acquisition and maintenance of important real-world skills. Further, these two interventions will be contrasted with a Combined Cognitive Rehabilitation plus Functional Enhancement Program (CR+FE). Cognitive and functional training, in combination with the use of pharmacological agents, may have important future benefits, especially in light of the considerable ongoing effort to develop more effective medications for the treatment of AD. These benefits could include optimizing the effectiveness of these agents and prolonging the independence of the patient.