Editorial: New drugs for Alzheimer's disease in Japan.

The authors reflect on drug developments for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease in Japan. They highlight the pharmacological factors of cholinesterase inhibitors such as tacrine, donepezil, rivastigmine, and galantamine and an N-methyl-D-Aspartate (NMDA) antagonist approved by the Japanese Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency (PMDA) to treat the disease. They also discuss the drug development and drug approval processes of the said drugs and their effectiveness in treating the disease.