UK researchers have linked drugs commonly prescribed to half the people over 65 to increased incidence of death and mental decline. The researchers' findings, which are being published this month in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, suggest that the side-effects of the drugs have an impact on the brain, increasing the risk of decline and death.
The new study examined 13,000 patients aged 65 or older and focused on drugs which have 'anticholinergic activity' - a known potential side effect of many prescription and over the counter drugs which affects the brain by blocking a key neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. Each drug taken by the participants was given a ranking based on the strength of its anticholinergic activity, or AntiCholinergic Burden (ACB) -- 0 for no effect, 1 for mild effect, 2 for moderate effect and 3 for severe effect. Thus, a patient taking one severe drug and two mild ones would have an overall score of five.
Researchers found that the risk was cumulative, based on the number of drugs taken and the strength of each drug's effect. The results showed that one in five people taking drugs with a total score of four or more had died by the end of the two-year study, compared with only 7% percent of those taking no anticholinergic drugs. The study also found that for every additional point scored, the odds of dying increased by 26%.
The large cohort study was led by researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) and is part of the Medical Research Council's Cognitive Function and Ageing Studies (CFAS) projectto find ways of reducing risk factors for dementia, which affects 820,000 people in the UK. Joining the UEA researchers were colleagues at the University of Cambridge, Indiana University and National Health Service clinicians.
Researchers found that the risk was cumulative, based on the number of drugs taken and the strength of each drug's effect. The results showed that one in five people taking drugs with a total score of four or more had died by the end of the two-year study, compared with only 7% percent of those taking no anticholinergic drugs. The study also found that for every additional point scored, the odds of dying increased by 26%.
The large cohort study was led by researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) and is part of the Medical Research Council's Cognitive Function and Ageing Studies (CFAS) projectto find ways of reducing risk factors for dementia, which affects 820,000 people in the UK. Joining the UEA researchers were colleagues at the University of Cambridge, Indiana University and National Health Service clinicians.
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