Posted on 02/02/2025 10:53:28 AM PST by ConservativeMind
A new study found frequent treatment with intranasal oxytocin—a hormone in the brain associated with empathy—offers promise for addressing a key symptom among patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD): Apathy.
It's a common issue among those with FTD, which affects the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain, impacting language, behavior and decision making. Patients with FTD lose interest in hobbies and passions that previously brought them joy and, most devastatingly, become apathetic toward family, friends, even grandchildren and pets.
Until now, there have been no cures or proven treatments for prevalent symptoms of FTD, including apathy.
The condition is one of the most common forms of early onset neurodegenerative dementia.
"FTD tends to present itself through changes in behavior, such as becoming disinhibited or impulsive, developing new compulsive behaviors, changes in eating habits and some forms present with changes in language as well.
"Apathy is one of the core symptoms of FTD, and often the first to develop," said Dr. Elizabeth Finger.
The study was a phase 2a/b randomized, adaptive, placebo-controlled crossover, multi-center clinical trial. The research was conducted across 11 sites in Canada and the U.S., from 2018 to 2023, and 74 patients completed the trial.
Patients were given two daily treatments of oxytocin through nasal spray, every third day for six weeks by their care partners.
At the end of the study, researchers analyzed whether every third day dosing improved apathy, as rated by patient care partners. Comparing the apathy NPI scores at the end of the oxytocin treatments with those of the patients receiving placebo treatments, there was a significant improvement in apathy when using oxytocin.
"It is a robust effect, but it is in the range of mild improvement. It's not night and day, but enough that it was detectable by the care partners," Finger said.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Yeah, I’m thinking of asking my doc if he has any free samples for me to try.
IIRC, this is what Bruce Willis has ........
New!
“oxytocin”
Now you have brain twisting the above into “oxycontin”.
Crappy day for me, but it’s still great that you post these!
Nipple stimulation causes oxytocin release.
At least for women, no idea if it works for males...
Research has shown that nipple stimulation causes the release of endogenous [within the body] oxytocin, but in a pulsatile fashion. “It creates this rapid surge of oxytocin, and then it drops immediately,” explains McAdow. Nipple stimulation may be conducted through self-massage using one's fingers.
You can just buy oxy nasal spray on Amazon.
Just search for oxytocin nasal spray.. it ain’t cheap though.
We used to give these spray bottles to women to help them with breastmilk letdown.. some women have a hard time starting their flow.
Most modern breast pumps start with an oxytocin inducing rapid suckling pattern for a few moments to help with letdown... it mimics the same pattern the baby uses to start things off...
I remember one young lady who remarked that she loved the effect of the rapid suckling pattern from the pump and would just use it to calm down..
Or get a cuddly pet and produce more oxytocin on your own.
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