Namenda memantine HCI

Taking Namenda

Namenda: Easy to Start, Easy to Take

Namenda® (memantine HCl)* is easy to start and easy to take because:

  • Namenda can be taken with or without food
  • Namenda is available in tablets and liquid, for those who have difficulty swallowing tablets
  • A convenient Titration Pak guides patients through the first four weeks of treatment
dosing titration pack namenda bottles

Getting Started

Therapy begins at a low dose (5 mg per day) and is gradually increased until the target dose (10 mg, two times a day) is reached. To be effective, Namenda must be taken correctly, according to the following schedule 1:

Namenda dosing schedule

  1. Week 1: Start on Day 1

    Take one 5 mg tablet in the morning, each day.

  2. Week 2: Start on Day 8

    Take one 5 mg tablet in the morning and one 5 mg tablet at night, each day.

  3. Week 3: Start on Day 15

    Take one 10 mg tablet in the morning and one 5 mg tablet at night, each day.

  4. Week 4: Start on Day 22

    Take one 10 mg tablet in the morning and one 10 mg tablet at night, each day.

  5. Once the target dose (10 mg, two times a day) has been reached, people taking Namenda can continue with that daily regimen unless instructed otherwise by their doctors. (For patients with severe renal impairment, 5 mg twice a day is the recommended dose.) 1

As with all types of prescription medication, do not stop taking Namenda without first talking to a doctor.

A Day Well Spent

Since there is no cure for Alzheimer's disease, the goal of treatment with Namenda®, as with all Alzheimer's medications, is to treat the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease. Patients taking Namenda have experienced 2:

  • A slower rate of decline in thinking over time
  • Significantly higher ability to perform daily activities, including doing household tasks such as taking out the garbage or cleaning the table after dinner, as well as conversing. 2,3

Once on Namenda, please keep in mind that either no change in Alzheimer's disease symptoms or a slower decline in symptoms are positive results compared to the rapid decline a person with Alzheimer's disease might experience without treatment. It is important to understand that every day that symptom progression is delayed may allow for the person with Alzheimer's disease to spend more quality time with his or her loved ones.

Next Topic: Namenda Stories

  1. Namenda® Prescribing Information. Forest Pharmaceuticals, Inc. St Louis, Mo.
  2. Reisberg B et al. N Engl J Med. 2003
  3. Feldman H et al. Poster presented at ECNP. 2005
  • *Namenda is indicated for the treatment of moderate to severe Alzheimer's disease.