Could a common blood pressure pill help african americans with memory loss?

NCT ID NCT04522739

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tested whether spironolactone, a blood pressure medication, is safe for older African Americans with mild memory and thinking problems. Twenty-five participants took either the drug or a placebo daily for one year. The main goal was to check safety and tolerability, with a secondary look at memory test performance.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
Spironolactone (a blood pressure medication)
What this could lead to
If successful, this could point toward a safe way to potentially help memory in African Americans with early Alzheimer's.
What could go wrong
This is a small, early safety study with only 25 participants. It may not show any benefit for memory, and side effects are possible.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Phase 4

Runs after approval, following long-term safety and how well the treatment works in everyday use.

Participants

25 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Sep 2022

Finished

Sep 2025

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

50 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Signed and dated informed consent form * Willingness to comply with all study procedures and availability for the duration of the study * Self-identified African American * Blood pressure (BP) and hypertension criteria: normotensive and hypertensive participants will be eligible * Normotensive criteria: BP 110-140/40-90 mmHg and not receiving any treatment for hypertension * Hypertensive criteria: only controlled hypertensives will be eligible with BP range as in the normotensive criteria of 110-140/40-90 mmHg * MCI defined as: * Abnormal memory function per the Logical Memory subscale (Delayed Paragraph Recall, Paragraph A only) from the Wechsler Memory Scale-Revised (the maximum score is 25): * Score \<11 for 16 or more years of education * Score \<9 for 8-15 years of education * Score \<6 for \<7 years of education * Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score 13-25 * Preserved general functional performance per Functional Assessment Questionnaire (FAQ)\<9 Exclusion Criteria: * History of stroke in the previous three years * MoCA\<13 or the inability to follow instructions to perform cognitive testing * Inability to participate in the study procedures: cognitive tests (communication limitations from language or other factors) * Active medical problem/symptom that interferes with the study procedures, e.g., chest pain, shortness of breath, or abdominal pain * Deemed ineligible by study investigators due to safety issues or non-compliance * History of the inability to tolerate treatment with an aldosterone antagonist * Hypertension * Uncontrolled defined as a BP \> 140/90 mmHg * Current therapy with RAAS modulating medications, i.e., angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB), angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEi), renin inhibitor, or aldosterone antagonist such as eplerenone (Inspra) due to the risk of hyperkalemia and the interference with the renin angiotensin aldosterone system (RAAS) system * Renal disease (baseline creatinine \> 2.0 mg/dL) * Hyperkalemia (K+ \> 5.5 milliequivalent (mEq)/dL) * Other neurological or psychiatric conditions that could impact cognition, e.g., Parkinson's disease and related movement disorders, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, or schizophrenia, untreated major depressive disorder, and other psychotic disorders * Abnormal thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) (\>10 milliunits (mU)/L) or vitamin B12 (\<250 pg/mL) as they can impact cognitive function. If the potential participant's TSH and/or vitamin B12 levels are abnormal, then the PI may enroll that person if it is thought the lab abnormalities are unrelated and do not affect cognitive function * Active medical or psychiatric disease, which in the judgment of the study investigators affects participant safety or the scientific integrity of the study * Uncontrolled congestive heart failure reflected by poor exercise tolerance and shortness of breath * Women of childbearing potential, i.e., non-menopausal * When potential participants are not capable of providing informed consent due to their cognitive impairment and a study partner/legally authorized representative (LAR) is not available to sign consent forms on their behalf

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Alzheimer disease Cognitive Dysfunction

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Emory Clinic at Executive Park

    Atlanta, Georgia, 30329, United States

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