Purpose

Using a new formulation of rifaximin, a non-absorbable antibiotic, to test if it can affect microbes in the gut of patients with dementia favorably.

Conditions

Eligibility

Eligible Ages
Over 65 Years
Eligible Sex
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
No

Inclusion Criteria

  • Probable Alzheimer's Disease (AD) or Vascular Dementia (VaD) mild or moderate based on Clinical Dementia Rating Scale. - Males and Females Age ≥ 65 years - Community living with availability of caregiver to accompany participant to study visits and to participate in the study. - Able to consent or legal guardian who can consent (with participant assent). - Legally authorized representative (LAR) and caregiver for the study is the same individual. - Fluency (both participant and caregiver) in written and spoken English to participate in study visits.

Exclusion Criteria

  • Dementia not due to AD or VaD - Clinically significant agitation or aggression (requiring treatment with antipsychotic medication) - Delusions and/or hallucinations - Severe psychopathology including major depression - Unstable, severe, or poorly controlled medical conditions evident from physical examination or clinical history - Visual and/or hearing disorder that prevents completion of neuropsychologic evaluations. - Diarrhea - Hypersensitivity to rifaximin, components of rifaximin, - and any rifamycin antimicrobial agent - Antibiotic use in the prior 6 months - Taking medications that interact with Rifaximin. P-glycoprotein (P-gp) inhibitor treatment is permitted as long as the use of P-gp inhibitors is discussed with the investigator. - History of alcohol and/or drug abuse - Participation in another investigational drug trial in the last 30 days

Study Design

Phase
Phase 1/Phase 2
Study Type
Interventional
Allocation
N/A
Intervention Model
Sequential Assignment
Primary Purpose
Treatment
Masking
Triple (Participant, Care Provider, Outcomes Assessor)

Arm Groups

ArmDescriptionAssigned Intervention
Placebo Comparator
Placebo
Patients will be given placebo and actual drug sequentially with the order hidden
  • Drug: Placebo
    Placebo drug
Experimental
Rifaximin SSD 40mg IR BID
Patients will be given placebo and actual drug sequentially with the order hidden
  • Drug: Rifaximin SSD 40 mg IR tablet
    Drug therapy vs placebo

Recruiting Locations

Richmond VA Medical Center
Richmond, Virginia 23249
Contact:
Haley Obolewicz, RN
804-675-5000
haley.obolewicz@va.gov

More Details

NCT ID
NCT06718686
Status
Recruiting
Sponsor
Jasmohan Bajaj

Study Contact

Jasmohan S Bajaj, MD
804-675-5802
jasmohan.bajaj@vcuhealth.org

Detailed Description

Hypothesis: Rifaximin SSD therapy is safe and well tolerated in patients with AD and VaD with beneficial changes in systemic inflammation and systemic biomarkers of dementia due to improvement in microbiota function compared to placebo-related changes in a single-blind, placebo-controlled Phase 1b/2a trial . Overall Objective: In a single blind placebo-controlled trial in patients with Alzheimer's or vascular dementia, to determine the effect of rifaximin SSD compared to placebo on gut microbial structure and function, cognitive and daily function, and caregiver burden.

Notice

Study information shown on this site is derived from ClinicalTrials.gov (a public registry operated by the National Institutes of Health). The listing of studies provided is not certain to be all studies for which you might be eligible. Furthermore, study eligibility requirements can be difficult to understand and may change over time, so it is wise to speak with your medical care provider and individual research study teams when making decisions related to participation.