Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study
Montelukast is a well-established antiasthmatic drug with little side effects. It is a leukotriene receptor antagonist and recent research suggests cognitive benefits from its anti-inflammatory actions on the central nervous system. However, changes in brain activity were not directly shown so far i...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2021-04-01
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| Series: | Brain Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/547 |
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| author | Fabian Schwimmbeck Wolfgang Staffen Christopher Höhn Fabio Rossini Nora Renz Markus Lobendanz Peter Reichenpfader Bernhard Iglseder Ludwig Aigner Eugen Trinka Yvonne Höller |
| author_facet | Fabian Schwimmbeck Wolfgang Staffen Christopher Höhn Fabio Rossini Nora Renz Markus Lobendanz Peter Reichenpfader Bernhard Iglseder Ludwig Aigner Eugen Trinka Yvonne Höller |
| author_sort | Fabian Schwimmbeck |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Montelukast is a well-established antiasthmatic drug with little side effects. It is a leukotriene receptor antagonist and recent research suggests cognitive benefits from its anti-inflammatory actions on the central nervous system. However, changes in brain activity were not directly shown so far in humans. This study aims to document changes in brain activity that are associated with cognitive improvement during treatment with Montelukast. We recorded EEG and conducted neuropsychological tests in 12 asthma-patients aged 38–73 years before and after 8 weeks of treatment with Montelukast. We found no significant changes on neuropsychological scales for memory, attention, and mood. In the EEG, we found decreased entropy at follow up during rest (<i>p</i> < 0.005). During episodic memory acquisition we found decreased entropy (<i>p</i> < 0.01) and acceleration of the background rhythm (<i>p</i> < 0.05). During visual attention performance, we detected an increase in gamma power (<i>p</i> < 0.005) and slowing of the background rhythm (<i>p</i> < 0.05). The study is limited by its small sample size, young age and absence of baseline cognitive impairment of the participants. Unspecific changes in brain activity were not accompanied by cognitive improvement. Future studies should examine elderly patients with cognitive impairment in a double-blind study with longer-term treatment by Montelukast. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:56:14Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ae0bd07e3286425980cb9e37fde22876 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-3425 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:56:14Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain Sciences |
| spelling | doaj.art-ae0bd07e3286425980cb9e37fde228762023-11-21T17:18:11ZengMDPI AGBrain Sciences2076-34252021-04-0111554710.3390/brainsci11050547Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG StudyFabian Schwimmbeck0Wolfgang Staffen1Christopher Höhn2Fabio Rossini3Nora Renz4Markus Lobendanz5Peter Reichenpfader6Bernhard Iglseder7Ludwig Aigner8Eugen Trinka9Yvonne Höller10Department of Neurology, Christian Doppler University Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDepartment of Neurology, Christian Doppler University Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaCentre for Cognitive Neuroscience (CCNS), Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDepartment of Neurology, Christian Doppler University Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDepartment of Neurology, Christian Doppler University Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaMedical Practice for Pulmonology Lobendanz, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaMedical Practice for Pulmonology Reichenpfader, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDepartment of Geriatric Medicine, Christian Doppler University Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaSpinal Cord Injury and Tissue Regeneration Center Salzburg (SCI-TReCS), Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaDepartment of Neurology, Christian Doppler University Hospital, Paracelsus Medical University, 5020 Salzburg, AustriaFaculty of Psychology, University of Akureyri, 600 Akureyri, IcelandMontelukast is a well-established antiasthmatic drug with little side effects. It is a leukotriene receptor antagonist and recent research suggests cognitive benefits from its anti-inflammatory actions on the central nervous system. However, changes in brain activity were not directly shown so far in humans. This study aims to document changes in brain activity that are associated with cognitive improvement during treatment with Montelukast. We recorded EEG and conducted neuropsychological tests in 12 asthma-patients aged 38–73 years before and after 8 weeks of treatment with Montelukast. We found no significant changes on neuropsychological scales for memory, attention, and mood. In the EEG, we found decreased entropy at follow up during rest (<i>p</i> < 0.005). During episodic memory acquisition we found decreased entropy (<i>p</i> < 0.01) and acceleration of the background rhythm (<i>p</i> < 0.05). During visual attention performance, we detected an increase in gamma power (<i>p</i> < 0.005) and slowing of the background rhythm (<i>p</i> < 0.05). The study is limited by its small sample size, young age and absence of baseline cognitive impairment of the participants. Unspecific changes in brain activity were not accompanied by cognitive improvement. Future studies should examine elderly patients with cognitive impairment in a double-blind study with longer-term treatment by Montelukast.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/547montelukastEEGcognitive testsanti-inflammatory drugleukotriene receptor antagonist |
| spellingShingle | Fabian Schwimmbeck Wolfgang Staffen Christopher Höhn Fabio Rossini Nora Renz Markus Lobendanz Peter Reichenpfader Bernhard Iglseder Ludwig Aigner Eugen Trinka Yvonne Höller Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study Brain Sciences montelukast EEG cognitive tests anti-inflammatory drug leukotriene receptor antagonist |
| title | Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study |
| title_full | Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study |
| title_fullStr | Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study |
| title_short | Cognitive Effects of Montelukast: A Pharmaco-EEG Study |
| title_sort | cognitive effects of montelukast a pharmaco eeg study |
| topic | montelukast EEG cognitive tests anti-inflammatory drug leukotriene receptor antagonist |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3425/11/5/547 |
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