A drug that increases growth hormone release improved several measures of cognitive function in cognitively normal and mildly impaired older individuals in a placebo-controlled trial, a researcher said here. Scores on standard tests of executive function and verbal memory were significantly higher in participants given tesamorelin (Egrifta), a synthetic analog of growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH), in a 20-week trial, said Laura D. Baker, PhD, of the University of Washington. Participants taking the drug in the 78-person trial also reported greater subjective improvement in cognition relative to the placebo group, Baker told attendees at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease.
