Drugs used by millions of people to treat bladder problems or depression may increase their risk of developing dementia in later life by as much as a third, UK researchers have warned.
Doctors have known for a while that these drugs can impair memory function and attention while they are being taken and can cause a sharp decline in the condition of older people.
However, new research led by scientists at the University of East Anglia (UEA) suggests that the taking them for over a year could increase the likelihood of people developing dementia up to 20 years later.
“We found that people who had been diagnosed with dementia were up to 30 per cent more likely to have been prescribed specific classes of anticholinergic medications,” said Dr George Savva from UEA’s School of Health Sciences and the lead author of the study published in the BMJ today.
“The association with dementia increases with greater exposure to these types of medication,” he added.
The biggest effect was in drugs used for bladder disorders; such as oxybutynin and tolterodine; antidepressants, including amitriptyline and paroxetine; and Parkinson's disease, including benzatropine and procyclidine.
These types of medication all interfere with acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter chemical which is important in nerve cell signalling in the brain and around the body and has an important role in memory function.
SOURCE: Independent