Studies Presented at International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease Reveal Substantial Economic Costs and Caregiver Burden Asso
July 14 2009 - 9:00AM
PR Newswire (US)
VIENNA, Austria, July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Elan
Corporation, plc (NYSE:ELN) and Wyeth (NYSE:WYE) presented
information this week at the Alzheimer Association 2009
International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease (ICAD 2009) from
seven posters and one podium presentation about the growing burden
of care and costs associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and how
to measure them. This information sheds light on the impact of AD,
which, as the population ages, will place a significant and
increasing burden on patients, families, and caregivers, as well as
public health systems worldwide. The costs of Alzheimer's disease
are difficult to estimate, highlighting the importance of the
information presented. "These analyses provide important
information - in some cases for the first time - about the
associations between AD and the health and wellbeing of patients,
healthcare costs, and the burden on caregivers," said study
investigator, Daniel Murman, M.D., M.S., Associate Professor and
Director, Memory Disorders and Behavior Neurology Program with the
Department of Neurological Sciences at the University of Nebraska
Medical Center. "This information shows that not only are AD
patients more likely than their peers to suffer from other serious
conditions, but their needed care takes a tremendous toll on their
caregivers. All of this means increased burden and financial costs
to individuals and the healthcare system." About the Poster
Presentations Poster #P3-221: Predicting Costs of Care for Unique
Dependence Levels in Patients with AD (Murman DL, et al.) A new,
longitudinal, non-interventional study of 133 Alzheimer's disease
patients/caregiver pairs showed an exponential relationship between
total costs and AD dependence levels, with costs increasing
significantly with increasing dependence. In this study, dependence
level provided a useful method to estimate unique levels of care
and associated costs that can be used in pharmacoeconomic
evaluations of new treatments for AD patients in a transparent and
meaningful manner. Poster #P1-180: Relationship Between Patient
Dependence and Caregiver Burden in Alzheimer's Disease (Lacey LA,
et al.) A new, longitudinal, non-interventional study that included
155 Alzheimer's disease patients/caregiver pairs across the U.S.
and Europe assessed the relationship of AD patients' dependence on
caregiver burden, connecting the impact of worsening AD severity on
family members or other caregivers. This is the first study
exploring the relationship between dependence and
caregiver-reported burden via the Caregiver Reaction Assessment, a
tool that captures both negative and positive reactions of giving
care in an informal setting. Specifically, this poster presented an
interim analysis that found caregivers reported experiencing
increased disruption in daily schedules, greater lack of family
support, and more time devoted to being a caregiver as AD patients'
dependence increased. "Given these recent findings, it's vital for
continued research, measurement, and documentation of the growing
burden of care and cost of Alzheimer's disease to adequately
provide support for caregivers and assess patient healthcare
needs," said Dr. Dale P. Schenk, Executive Vice President and Chief
Scientific Officer of Elan. "Elan and Wyeth, through the
Alzheimer's Immunotherapy Program (AIP), are committed to advancing
research in all aspects of the disease." Poster #P2-071: Increased
Risk of Serious Comorbidities in a Cohort of AD Patients Compared
to a Similar Non-AD Cohort (Malone D, et al.) A retrospective data
analysis showed that AD patients appear to have a higher prevalence
of certain serious conditions compared to patients without AD.
These analyses were comprised of an evaluation of claims data for
more than 33 million Americans from a managed care population over
the course of eight years. The study authors concluded that the
most notable serious conditions were decubitus ulcers (bed sores,
5-fold higher), seizures (4-fold higher), hip fractures, (3-fold
higher), depression (3-fold higher), and pneumonia (2-fold higher).
According to Professor Roy Jones, Director, The Research Institute
for the Care of Older People, Bath, United Kingdom, these
conditions alone can add significant burden to patients and their
loved ones, but in combination with AD, they often translate into
significant financial cost, poor health outcomes, and higher risk
of death. "I regularly see elderly patients who have multiple
conditions that increase the complexity of their care, but until
now there have been little data available to reflect the
significance and increased prevalence of other conditions in people
with Alzheimer's disease," Professor Jones said. Poster #P2-066:
Web-Based Application to Estimate and Project the Burden of
Alzheimer's Disease and Evaluate the Impact of Potential
Interventions (Colantuoni E, et al.) More than 26 million people
worldwide are estimated to have Alzheimer's disease; however, an
updated model suggests that global AD prevalence can be expected to
increase to over 100 million by 2050. The Web-based application
presented in the poster allowed cost estimate calculations on the
future burden of AD. The tool was shown to generate projections for
a specified population and generate estimates of disease burden,
costs, and/or Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs), along with
the impact of interventions that can reduce risk or slow
progression. Projecting the future burden of AD is important for
researchers and policy makers who are evaluating the potential
impact of interventions that may reduce disease risk or slow
disease progression. "This kind of work is important and we applaud
the Alzheimer's Immunotherapy Program (AIP) for supporting research
to better understand the burden of this disease and its impact on
affected families," said Marc Wortman, Executive Director,
Alzheimer's Disease International. Editors Note: The following Elan
and Wyeth abstracts were also presented at ICAD: -- Poster #P1-204:
Estimating HRQOL for Unique Dependence Levels in Patients with AD
(Murman DL, et al.) -- Poster #P3-113: Hip Fracture Risk and
Subsequent Mortality among Alzheimer's Disease Patients in the
United Kingdom, 1988-2007 (Baker NL, et al.) -- Poster #P1-212:
Estimating Dependence Scale Scores Based on Clinical Dementia
Rating-Sum of Boxes Scores in Patients with Mild Cognitive
Impairment or Mild to Moderate Alzheimer's Disease (Cohen J, et
al.) -- Podium: Development of an Algorithm for Identifying AD
Severity in Administrative Claims Data (Mucha L, et al.) About
Alzheimer's Disease It is estimated that one in eight baby boomers
will develop AD, resulting in significant costs to society and
individuals. Recent data estimate the cost of dementia including AD
at nearly $120 billion annually in direct and indirect costs in
Europe and $148 billion in the U.S. Alzheimer's disease is a
progressive brain disorder that gradually destroys a person's
memory and ability to learn, reason, make judgments, communicate
and carry out daily activities, such as bathing and eating. As
Alzheimer's disease progresses, individuals may also experience
changes in personality and behavior, such as anxiety,
suspiciousness or agitation, as well as delusions or
hallucinations. About the Elan and Wyeth Collaboration The
Alzheimer's Immunotherapy Program (AIP) is a collaboration between
Elan and Wyeth to research, develop, and commercialize
immunotherapeutic approaches that may be used to treat and possibly
prevent the onset of Alzheimer's disease. The AIP is committed to
researching the burden of care and cost of AD as well as developing
tools that help advance these efforts. The AIP is also currently
conducting clinical trial enrollment throughout Europe and the
United States for its lead investigative compound bapineuzumab. An
extensive global Phase 3 clinical program was initiated in December
2007 for bapineuzumab as a potential treatment for patients with
mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. To learn more about this
trial and potential enrollment, patients or caregivers should
contact clinical sites directly. Participating clinical sites in
North America can be found by visiting http://www.icarastudy.com/
or calling 1 (888) 818-MEMORY. For study information outside North
America, visit http://www.globalicarastudy.com/. Study site details
also can be found on http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/. In addition,
the AIP is continuing to conduct safety trials with bapineuzumab
subcutaneous and ACC-001. About Elan Elan Corporation, plc is a
neuroscience-based biotechnology company committed to making a
difference in the lives of patients and their families by
dedicating itself to bringing innovations in science to fill
significant unmet medical needs that continue to exist around the
world. Elan shares trade on the New York, London and Dublin Stock
Exchanges. For additional information about the company, please
visit http://www.elan.com/. About Wyeth Wyeth (NYSE:WYE) is one of
the world's largest research-driven pharmaceutical and health care
products companies. It is a leader in the discovery, development,
manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceuticals, vaccines,
biotechnology products, nutritionals and non-prescription medicines
that improve the quality of life for people worldwide. The
Company's major divisions include Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth
Consumer Healthcare and Fort Dodge Animal Health. Safe
Harbor/Forward-Looking Statements The statements in this press
release regarding the Alzheimer's Immunotherapy Program, including
the clinical program for bapineuzumab, are forward-looking
statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or
implied by such statements. In particular, there can be no
assurance that the clinical program for bapineuzumab will be
successful in demonstrating safety and/or efficacy, that we will
not encounter problems or delays in clinical development, or that
bapineuzumab will ever receive regulatory approval or be
successfully commercialized. Other risks and uncertainties that
could cause actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements include
those detailed from time to time in the companies' periodic reports
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including
Wyeth`s current reports on Form 8-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q
and annual report on Form 10-K, particularly the discussion under
the caption "Item 1A, Risk Factors" in Wyeth's Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, which was filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 27, 2009,
and Elan's Reports of Foreign Issuer on Form 6-K and Annual Report
on Form 20-F, particularly the discussion under the caption "Item
3D, Risk Factors" in Elan's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year
ended December 31, 2008, which was filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission on February 26, 2009 The forward-looking
statements in this press release are qualified by these risk
factors. The companies assume no obligation to publicly update any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future developments or otherwise. DATASOURCE: Wyeth Pharmaceuticals
CONTACT: investors, Chris Burns, +1-800-252-3526, or David
Marshall, +353-1-709-4444, both of Elan, or Justin Victoria,
+1-973-660-5340 of Wyeth; media, Mary Stutts, +1-650-794-4403 or
+1-650-823-5255, or Miriam Mason, +1-650-238-7113 or
+1-650-877-7616, both of Elan, or Douglas Petkus, +1-973-660-5218,
or Gwendolyn Fisher, +1-484-865-5160, both of Wyeth
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