Certain common medications tied to 30% higher dementia risk, study finds

Many older adults know that long-term use of certain medications can negatively affect cognition and increase one's risk of dementia.
But a new study suggests that some classes of anticholinergic drugs -- particularly those used to treat depression, Parkinson's and urinary incontinence -- carry a higher risk than others.

Certain common medications tied to 30% higher dementia risk, study finds 150827130939-medicine-pills-capsules-medium-plus-169

Certain common medications tied to 30% higher dementia risk, study finds 150827130939-medicine-pills-capsules-medium-plus-169

Anticholinergic drugs function by blocking the effects of acetylcholine, a chemical released by nerve cells to send signals to other nerves and muscles. They are prescribed to 20% to 50% of older adults in the United States to treat a variety of neurological, psychiatric, gastrointestinal, respiratory and muscular conditions, according to a 2009 study. In the UK, 34% to 48% of older adults take them, another study found.
The new study, published Wednesday in the British Medical Journal, looked at the risk of new-onset dementia among nearly 350,000 older adults in the United Kingdom. The researchers found that people who used certain types of anticholinergics, such as those used to treat depression, Parkinson's and urinary incontinence, for a year or more had about a 30% increased risk of developing dementia down the road.
But those individuals taking other classes of anticholinergics -- including those used for asthma and gastrointestinal issues -- were not at an increased risk of developing dementia compared with matched controls, the study found.
"Previous studies had really only said that anticholinergics were associated with dementia incidence," said George Savva, researcher of health sciences at the University of East Anglia and a lead author on the study, in a news briefing. "But we broke it down by class, which is where our study really has its novelty and power."

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/04/25/health/anticholinergic-drugs-dementia-risk-study/index.html

Certain common medications tied to 30% higher dementia risk, study finds

Certain common medications tied to 30% higher dementia risk, study finds

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