Common drugs including anti-depressants could increase dementia risk by up to 50 per cent

[Swordsmyth]

Common drugs including anti-depressants could increase the risk of dementia by up to 50 per cent, a major study has found.
Experts said the findings had “enormous implications” for millions of Britons, with half of middle-aged people taking one of the medications.
The class of drugs - which are also prescribed to treat bladder conditions, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy- are called anti-cholinergic medication.
Scientists said they could be could be responsible for as many as one in 10 cases of dementia.
The study by Nottingham University, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, involved more than 280,000 UK patients over the age of 55 - including around 59,000 with a diagnosis of dementia.
Among both groups, more than half were taking some kind of anti-cholinergic drugs, which help to relax muscles, and work by blocking acetylcholine, a chemical that transmits messages in the nervous system.
Their findings showed an almost 50 per cent increased risk of dementia among patients aged 55 and over who had used strong anti-cholinergic medication daily for three years or more.
The NHS advises that these drugs should be avoided for frail older people because of their impact on memory and thinking.
But experts said the new findings suggested caution should be taken in prescribing them to anyone who is middle aged or older.




Professor Tom Dening, Head of the Centre for Dementia at Nottingham University, said: "This study provides further evidence that doctors should be careful when prescribing certain drugs that have anti-cholinergic properties.
"However, it's important that patients taking medications of this kind don't just stop them abruptly as this may be much more harmful.

More at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/201...ease-dementia/

[donnay]

Anti-depressants seem to be in the news lately. I have no doubt that they cause a lot more problems then people care to think about. They need to be stopped on a human-rights issue to start.