http://www.nhs.uk/news/2015/01January/Pages/media-dementia-scare-about-common-drugs.aspx[font face=Serif][font size=5]Media dementia scare over hay fever and sleep drugs[/font]
Tuesday January 27 2015
[font size=3]"Hay fever tablets raise risk of Alzheimer's," is the main front page news in the Daily Mirror. The Guardian mentions popular brand names such as Nytol, Benadryl, Ditropan and Piriton among the pills studied.
But before you clear out your bathroom medicine cabinet, you might want to consider the facts behind the (somewhat misleading) headlines.
The first thing to realise is although some of these drugs can be bought over the counter (OTC), in the US, OTC drugs are typically provided by a private health company. So the study was able to partially track the effects of OTC as well as prescription medication (which would be impossible in the UK).
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That said, this large, well-designed US study suggested those taking the highest levels of anticholinergic prescribed medicines were at a higher risk of developing dementia compared with those not taking any.
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http://sop.washington.edu/higher-dementia-risk-linked-use-common-drugs/[font face=Serif][font size=5]Higher dementia risk linked to more use of common drugs[/font]
[font size=3]Dr. Shelly Gray et. al. found a persistent link between dementia and some medications in a University of Washington/Group Health study published in JAMA Internal Medicine on January 26, 2015. The large study links a significantly increased risk for developing dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease, to taking commonly used medications with anticholinergic effects at higher doses or for a longer time. Many older people take these medications, which include nonprescription diphenhydramine (Benadryl). JAMA Internal Medicine published the report, called “
Cumulative Use of Strong Anticholinergic Medications and Incident Dementia.”
The study used more rigorous methods, longer follow-up (more than seven years), and better assessment of medication use via pharmacy records (including substantial nonprescription use) to confirm this previously reported link. It is the first study to show a dose response: linking more risk for developing dementia to higher use of anticholinergic medications. And it is also the first to suggest that dementia risk linked to anticholinergic medications may persist—and may not be reversible even years after people stop taking these drugs.
“Older adults should be aware that many medications—including some available without a prescription, such as over-the-counter sleep aids—have strong anticholinergic effects,” said Shelly Gray, PharmD, MS, the first author of the report, which tracks nearly 3,500 Group Health seniors participating in the long-running Adult Changes in Thought (ACT), a joint Group Health–University of Washington (UW) study funded by the National Institute on Aging. “And they should tell their health care providers about all their over-the-counter use,” she added.
“But of course, no one should stop taking any therapy without consulting their health care provider,” said Dr. Gray, who is a professor, the vice chair of curriculum and instruction, and director of the geriatric pharmacy program at the UW School of Pharmacy. “Health care providers should regularly review their older patients’ drug regimens—including over-the-counter medications—to look for chances to use fewer anticholinergic medications at lower doses.”
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[font face=Serif]Posted on 01/29/2015
[font size=5]Common Sleep and Allergy Medications Linked to Dementia, Alzheimer’s[/font]
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“We know that these medications may have an effect on memory, and we always assumed that these effects were reversible. We didn’t think these medications were changing the brain permanently. Our study does suggest a link between the highest use and increased dementia risk,” said Gray.
The researchers tracked 3,500 older adults for use of medications with an anticholinergic blocking effect on the nervous system. (The
People’s Pharmacy has a list of generic and brand-name anticholinergic medicines, including common side-effects.)
Medications that act on the brain this way are known to cause short-term problems with cognition and thinking — consider the pervasive “no driving or operating heavy machinery” warnings on the labels — but researchers with the University of Washington and Seattle’s Group Health Research Institute set out to see whether they have a long-term effect as well. They followed subjects for seven years, and used pharmacy records to track both prescription and over-the-counter medication use. The study was published Jan. 26 in
JAMA Internal Medicine.
Because trouble sleeping is a common long-term dilemma for older adults, Gray recommended that they “think twice” before choosing
over-the-counter sleeping pills and instead first try
nondrug therapy for
insomnia – such as avoiding sleep at least six hours before bedtime and waking up at the same time every day, even on weekends.
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