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.

seniors

Related News

DHA improves memory in older adults with cognitive impairment

There have been mixed findings about the benefits of DHA (an omega-3 fatty acid), but in a study involving 485 older adults (55+) with age-related cognitive impairment, those randomly assigned to take DHA for six months improved the score on a visuospatial learning and episodic memory test.

More evidence that older adults become less able to ignore distraction

A study involving young (average age 22) and older adults (average age 77) showed participants pictures of overlapping faces and places (houses and buildings) and asked them to identify the gender of the person.

Does early retirement dull your brain?

Do retired people tend to perform more poorly on cognitive tests than working people because you’re more likely to retire if your mental skills are starting to decline, or because retirement dulls the brain?

How the Alzheimer’s gene works; implications for treatment

Carriers of the so-called ‘Alzheimer’s gene’ (apoE4) comprise 65% of all Alzheimer's cases. A new study helps us understand why that’s true.

Low testosterone linked to Alzheimer's disease

A Chinese study involving 153 older men (55+; average age 72), of whom 47 had mild cognitive impairment, has found that 10 of those in the

Vitamin B12 may reduce risk of Alzheimer's disease

A seven-year study involving 271 Finns aged 65-79 has revealed that increases in the level of

Heavy smoking in midlife associated with dementia in later years

Data from 21,123 people, surveyed between 1978 and 1985 when in their 50s and tracked for dementia from 1994 to 2008, has revealed that those who smoked more than two packs per day in middle age had more than twice the risk of developing dementia, both Alzheimer's and

Old bees' memory fades too

I love cognitive studies on bees. The whole notion that those teeny-tiny brains are capable of the navigation and communication feats bees demonstrate is so wonderful. Now a new study finds that, just like us, aging bees find it hard to remember the location of a new home.

Walk for your brain’s sake

A long-running study involving 299 older adults (average age 78) has found that those who walked at least 72 blocks during a week of recorded activity (around six to nine miles) had greater gray matter volume nine years later.

70-year-olds smarter than they used to be

Beginning in 1971, healthy older adults in Gothenburg, Sweden, have been participating in a longitudinal study of their cognitive health. The first H70 study started in 1971 with 381 residents of Gothenburg who were 70 years old; a new one began in 2000 with 551 residents and is still ongoing.

Pages