Objective To evaluate the preventive effects of Haishe capsules on the conversion of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) to Alzheimer's disease(AD).Methods Patients (n=120) with aMCI from our department were recruited and randomly divided into the treatment group and the control group (n=60 in each group).The treatment group was given 0.9 gram of Haishe capsules three times a day while the control group received no drug treatment.Data on the conversion ratio,memory and cognitive function were comparedbetween the groups in a 24-months follow-up.Results By the end of the study,12 patients in the treatment group and 15 in the control group dropped out.Valid data for 93 patients were available for statistical analysis (48 in the treatment group and 45 in the control group).The number of aMCI patients who converted to AD was 6,with a conversion ratio of 12.5％ (6/48);and the number of patients who went through conversion in the control group was 13,with a conversion ratio of 28.8％ (13/45).The difference in conversion between the two groups was statistically significant (x2 =3.83,P＜0.05).After 24 months,MMSE scores for the treatment group (25.52± 1.07) had no significant change compared with baseline levels,while MMSE scores for the control group decreased significantly(24.75--1.49) and were markedly lower than thosefor the treatment group (t=2.85,P＜0.05).MoCA scores for the treatment group (19.39 ±2.01) did not show decline until the end of the study,while those for the control group started to decrease about half way through the study and were lower than scores for the treatment group (t =2.41,P＜0.05).Compared with baseline levels,ADAS-Cogscores for the treatment group (7.62± 1.06) did not increase significantly during the course of the study.ADAS-Cogscores forthe control group were higher at both half way (7.70±0.75) and the end of the study (8.18±0.80)than base line levels,and there was a statistically significant difference in end-of-study ADAS-Cog scores between the two groups(t =-2.6,P＜ 0.05).Conclusions Haishe capsules not only effectively maintain memory and cognitive function,but also delay the conversion from aMCI to AD.

Medications are the main means for the treatment of mental illness, and it is of great significance to be familiar with the adverse reactions of psychotropic drugs for the formulation and optimization of treatment plans.The prolongation of the QT interval corrected by heart rate(QTc interval)is one of the most common cardiotoxic reactions after taking psychotropic drugs and may lead to torsade de pointes and increase the risk of sudden cardiac death.The elderly population is more prone to QTc interval prolongation.In this review, we focus on the relationship between common psychotropic drugs and QTc interval prolongation and influencing factors in the elderly population, so as to help clinicians avoid risk in drug selection.

Alzheimer Disease(AD) presently remains an irreversible disease.Consequently,with current research findings and clinical practices,we propose a new prevention and treatment perspective,summarized in four aspects:early-stage,comprehensive,systematic,and long term,which are interrelated and yet show varying significance depending on the circumstances.We hope this view will help improve AD-related practices in prevention,clinical management,research and education,better equipping us to face challenges posed by AD.