Elderly people, taking ibuprofen for more than 5 years, have a 40 percent reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, the latest study suggests.

Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, afflicting 24 million people worldwide. To date, there is still no cure for Alzheimer's with only a few partially effective treatments. Alzheimer's is caused by accumulation of certain proteins in the form of amyloid plaques. This leads to inflammation and atrophy of brain tissue. Previous studies showed that the NSAID (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory) drug ibuprofen reduced serum levels of a protein called amyloid beta-1-42 (Aβ 1-42), which is present in these senile plaques. This lead researchers to investigate whether anti-inflammatory drugs might help in delaying the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers looked at prescription data from the U.S. Veterans Affairs health care system for different NSAIDs. In this large scale observational study patients used different NSAIDs for varying lengths of time with 400 case patients and 1952 control subjects using NSAIDs, mostly naproxen and ibuprofen, for over 5 years.

Final results showed that the longer people were taking ibuprofen, the lower the risk of developing Alzheimer's. Those who used ibuprofen for more than 5 years were 40 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease compared to those who did not take any NSAIDs.

Ibuprofen showed by far the biggest protective affect against Alzheimer's disease among all tested NSAIDs. "These results suggest that the effect may be due to specific NSAIDs rather than all NSAIDs as a class," says study author Steven Vlad, MD.

A different study tested two other NSAIDs, naproxen and celecoxib, but failed to demonstrate a decrease in risk for Alzheimer's disease. In fact it showed that naproxen is likely to be associated with a deleterious effect. There seems to be more benefit with older non selective NSAIDs, than with newer COX-2 specific NSAIDs.

Despite the benefits, doctors do not recommend taking ibuprofen for the prevention of Alzheimer's disease and cognitive decline as "All NSAIDs have significant risks including ulcers, gastrointestinal bleeding, kidney dysfunction, elevated blood pressure” and they also carry a cardiovascular risk, study author, Steven Vlad warns.

Sources: Long-term ibuprofen use cut Alzheimer's risk: study (Medline), Long-Term Use of Ibuprofen Lowers Alzheimer's Disease Risk (Medscape), Naproxen and Celecoxib Do Not Improve Cognitive Function in Elderly Patients (Medscape)