OBJECTIVE  To evaluate the effectiveness of Wuling capsules in treating Alzheimer’s disease(AD) across multiple dimensions, including cognitive function, psychiatric and behavioral symptoms, and activities of daily living, addressing the “ABC syndrome” core components.

METHODS  This study was a prospective cohort study(registration number: ChiCTR2200062493) that enrolled patients clinically diagnosed with AD or amnestic mild cognitive impairment(aMCI), who visited the Dementia Outpatient Department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University from January 2023 to December 2023 and completed follow-up assessments. Based on whether they were treated with Wuling capsules, participants were divided into observation group and control group. All patients underwent multiple neuropsychological evaluations at baseline and after 6 months, assessment with the clinical dementia rating(CDR) scale included the total score(CDR-SB), global score(CDR-GS), and scores for all individual domains of CDR, Montreal cognitive assessment(MoCA) adjusted score, mini-mental state examination(MMSE), neuropsychiatric inventory(NPI), and AD cooperative study-activities of daily living scale(ADCS-ADL). Multivariate regression analysis was performed to evaluate the differences in efficacy between the groups.

RESULTS  A total of 117 patients were enrolled, including 57 in the observation group and 60 in the control group. Compared with the control group, the pattients in observation group demonstrated significantly improvements in CDR-SB, CDR-GS, and subscale scores such as memory, judgment and problem-solving, and social affairs(all P<0.05); the NPI total score and the agitation/aggressive behavior subscale also showed more pronounced reductions(P<0.05), moreover, ADCS-ADL scores in the observation group remained stable, whereas the control group exhibited a significant decline(P<0.05). No significant differences were observed between groups in MoCA corrected scores or MMSE scores. Multivariate regression analysis further indicated that the use of Wuling capsules was an independent predictor of CDR-SB score decrease(P<0.05).

CONCLUSION The addition of Wuling capsules to conventional AD treatment significantly improved cognitive function, psychiatric and behavioral symptoms, and activities of daily living, suggesting their potential for multi-dimensional intervention in AD patients’ “ABC syndrome”. It provides new clinical evidence for the use of Chinese herbal compounds in treating AD.