Improvement in behavioral symptoms, motor impairment and activities of daily living in a patient with the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia under treatment with methylene blue

Abstract

We report the effects of a treatment with methylene blue over 6 months in a 46-year-old male suffering from the behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia. This treatment was initiated after the clinical status of the patient had deteriorated rapidly in the preceding months. After 4 months of treatment with methylene blue we observed a definite and lasting reduction of negative behavioral symptoms, an improvement in motor functions, particularly gait, and an improvement in basic activities of daily living. These improvements may be attributed to a disease-modifying effect of methylene blue, possibly mediated by its tau-filament dissolving properties.