Effect and Safety of Huannao Yicong Formula(还脑益聪方) in Patients with Mild-to-Moderate Alzheimer's Disease: A Randomized,Double-Blinded,Donepezil-Controlled Trial

Objective: To assess the effect and safety of Huannao Yicong Formula(还脑益聪方, HYF) in the treatment of patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease(AD). Methods: Sixty patients with mild-tomoderate AD were evenly randomized into HYF group and donepezil group with the random number method. Patients in the HYF group took 5 g of HYF granules twice daily and 5 mg placebo of donepezil once daily. Patients in the donepezil group took 5 mg donepezil once daily and 5 g placebo of HYF granules twice daily. The intervention lasted for 6 months. Clinical researchers, participants and statisticians were blinded to the treatment assignment throughout the study. The primary outcomes were scores of Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale(ADAS-Cog) and Chinese Medicine Symptom Scale(CM-SS). The secondary outcomes were scores of Montreal Cognitive Assessment(MoCA) test and Mini-Mental State Exam(MMSE). The serum levels of acetylcholinesterase(AchE) and amyloid-β protein 42(Aβ42) were detected with enzymelinked immunosorbent assay kits. The scale assessments were conducted at baseline, the 3 rd and 6 th months of treatment, respectively. Biochemistry tests were conducted at baseline and the 6 th month of treatment. Results: A total of 52 patients completed the trial, 28 in HYF group and 24 in donepezil group. Compared with the baseline, HYF and donepezil significantly decreased the total scores of ADAS-Cog and CM-SS, and significantly increased the scores of MoCA and MMSE after 6-month treatment(all P0.01). Both treatments remarkably reduced the serum levels of AchE and Aβ42(both P0.05). The CM-SS total effective rate of HYF was significantly higher than donepezil [75.00%(21/28) vs. 54.17%(13/24), P0.05]. No severe adverse events were observed in both groups. Conclusion: HYF is effective and safe for improving the cognitive function in mildto-moderate AD patients. [Trial registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry(Reg No. ChiCTR-IOR-17011746)]