Common drugs that can cause memory problems in older adults

06/2013

A large study, involving 3,690 older adults, has found that drugs with strong anticholinergic effects cause memory and cognitive impairment when taken continuously for a mere two months. Moreover, taking multiple drugs with weaker anticholinergic effects, such as many common over-the-counter digestive aids, affected cognition after 90 days’ continuous use. In both these cases, the risk of cognitive impairment doubled (approximately).

More positively, risk of Alzheimer’s did not seem to be affected (however, I do have to wonder how much weight we can put on that, given the apparent length of the study — although this is not a journal to which I have access, so I can’t be sure of that).

Although somewhat unexpected, previous research linking anticholinergics and cognitive impairment is consistent with this new finding.

Anticholinergic drugs block the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Older adults commonly use over-the-counter drugs with anticholinergic effects as sleep aids and to relieve bladder leakage. Drugs with anticholinergic effects are also frequently prescribed for many chronic diseases including hypertension, cardiovascular disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

You can download a list detailing the ‘anticholinergic burden’ of medications at: http://www.indydiscoverynetwork.org/AnticholinergicCognitiveBurdenScale.html

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/iu-sua050713.php

[3449] Cai, X., Campbell N., Khan B., Callahan C., & Boustani M.
(2013).  Long-term anticholinergic use and the aging brain.
Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association. 9(4), 377 - 385.

Related News

A study (“Midlife in the United States”) assessing 3,343 men and women aged 32-84 (mean age 56), of whom almost 40% had at least a 4-year college degree, has found evidence that frequent cognitive activity can counteract the detrimental effect of poor education on age-related cognitive decline.

Previous research has shown that older adults are more likely to incorrectly repeat an action in situations where a

It’s now well established that older brains tend to find it harder to filter out irrelevant information. But now a new study suggests that that isn’t all bad.

A study involving 155 women aged 65-75 has found that those who participated in resistance training once or twice weekly for a year significantly improved their selective attention (maintaining mental focus) and conflict resolution (as well as muscular function of course!), compared to those who

A number of rodent studies have shown that blueberries can improve aging memory; now for the first time, a human study provides evidence.

A study involving 57 cognitively healthy older adults has found that those who showed decreased memory performance two years later (20 of the 57) had higher baseline levels of phosphorylated tau231 in the

Midlife hypertension has been confirmed as a risk factor for the development of dementia in late life, but there have been conflicting findings about the role of late-life hypertension.

By following 597 Alzheimer’s patients over 15 years, researchers have determined that a simple progression rate can be calculated at the initial visit, using symptom onset and present performance, and that this can reliably identify slow, intermediate and rapid progression.

A survey of more than 100 studies involving PIB-PET, a diagnostic tool that involves injecting a radiotracer called

Pages

Subscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest health newsSubscribe to Latest news
Error | About memory

Error

The website encountered an unexpected error. Please try again later.