title: Chelation therapy. Unproved modality in the treatment of Alzheimer-type dementia.
abstract: Despite a dramatic increase in the understanding of the neuropathologic and neurochemical alterations accompanying Alzheimer's disease, by far the largest cause of progressive and incapacitating cognitive dysfunction in the elderly, physicians have as yet no pharmacologic agent that can be prescribed safely either to arrest or reverse this decline. This lack of effective therapeutic agents is contributing to the use by an increasing number of health professionals, including physicians and concerned families, of unproved, costly, and potentially dangerous modalities, such as chelation therapy. The purpose of this paper is to describe some individuals with Alzheimer-type dementia who have undergone chelation therapy.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D004492:Edetic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007263:Infusions, Parenteral; D008670:Metals / Q000378:metabolism; D011781:Quackery
chemical_list: D008670:Metals; D004492:Edetic Acid