People with Alzheimer's disease may benefit from taking a popular cholesterol-lowering medication. In a study of 63 people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's, the performance of those who took a drug called atorvastatin was better on tests of memory and brain function than that of those who did not take the drug.

The researchers, led by Larry Sparks of the Sun Health Research Institute in Sun City, Arizona, say the result is a sign that atorvastatin and similar drugs might slow the devastation caused by Alzheimer's.

"This fact that this trial showed a benefit is very exciting," says Benjamin Wolozin, a professor of pharmacology at the Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. "But it is not big enough to be definitive," he adds.

Atorvastatin, one of a class of common cholesterol-reducing drugs called statins, is taken by millions of people every year. Statins are usually used to lower the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Four years ago, Wolozin analysed 56,000 patient records in a database and found that people on statins were 70% less likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's than those who were not. Similar studies since then have also found a lower incidence of Alzheimer's in patients who take statin drugs.