The long-term use of ibuprofen, a painkiller, may help reducing the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease, says a US study published in the May 6 issue of Neurology. The study articulates that the people who use the painkiller ibuprofen regularly for five years may be less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease as they age.

Studying the data from almost 250,000 veterans, the researchers involved in the study found that those who used the painkiller for more than five years were more than 40% less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers from Boston University School of Medicine looked into the five years of data in 49,300 people over the age of 55 years who had developed Alzheimer's disease and almost 200,000 controls. They found that overall, use of NSAIDs for five years was associated with a 24% reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's, but the effects of ibuprofen were the most profound and some other NSAIDs, such as celecoxib, had no effect.

The study says that some other similar painkillers may also have a protective effect. Generally, the people using the class of drugs known as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may have a decreased risk for Alzheimer's as well, although the link here is not as clear-cut as it is for ibuprofen. Dementia experts said the results were interesting but warned against people taking ibuprofen to reduce their risk.

William Thies, vice president of medical and scientific relations for the Alzheimer's Association, said, "This discussion has been going on for a while. This trial is big enough and the results are good enough that it may reopen the debate -- that we should do a prevention study with these medications."

"Probably people shouldn't be taking these medications just to prevent Alzheimer's. The effect is too uncertain and the side effects are pretty well known. For those people who won't listen to this advice, they should be really careful to fill in their physician so he can track it with other medications," Thies said.

Dr. Steven Vlad, lead author of the study and a fellow in rheumatology at Boston University School of Medicine, said, "The big issue is that ibuprofen looks like it prevents Alzheimer's but all these drugs have well-known side effects and significant side effects, so the risk-benefit ratio is not clear at this point. Patients shouldn't go on ibuprofen to prevent Alzheimer's."