What are anticholinergic drugs, what conditions are they used to treat and what are the links to dementia?
Around two million people in the UK are currently using an anticholinergic drug - but scientists now claim that they increase the risk of dementia by a third
A NEW study has found a significant link between anticholinergic drugs and an increased risk of dementia.
The drugs are used by millions of people across the UK to treat conditions like incontinence, Parkinson’s disease and depression. Here’s the lowdown.
What are anticholinergic drugs?
Anticholinergic drugs include a broad class of medications that are used to treat various medical conditions that involve contraction and relaxation of muscles.
Examples of these conditions include overactive bladder, muscle spasms, breathing problems, diarrhoea, gastrointestinal cramps, movement disorders, and a number of mental health disorders.
Anticholinergics block acetylcholine (an organic chemical) from binding to its receptors on certain nerve cells, inhibiting parasympathetic nerve impulses.
These nerve impulses are responsible for involuntarily muscle movements in the gastrointestinal tract, lungs, urinary tract, and other parts of your body.
The nerve impulses help control functions such as salivation, digestion, urination and mucus secretion.
Blocking acetylcholine signals can decrease involuntary movement, digestion, and mucus secretion.
Patients prescribed anticholinergics often retain urine and experience dry mouth.
Anticholinergic drugs also help to balance the production of dopamine, another neurotransmitter that plays an important role in maintaining mood, movement, memory, attention, problem solving, motivation and pleasure.
What diseases and conditions do anticholinergic and antispasmodic drugs treat?
- Overactive bladder
- Movement problems in Parkinson's disease
- Diarrhoea
- Motion sickness
- Nausea and/or vomiting
- Muscle spasms
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- Asthma
- Mental health disorders
What are the links to dementia?
Researchers in the UK have found that using anticholinergic drugs may increase the risk of developing dementia in later life by as much as a third.
Previous studies found 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 taking them for longer than a year could increase the likelihood of people developing dementia up to 20 years later.
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.
The study did not find an increased dementia risk from anticholinergics commonly used for stomach cramps, hay fever and travel sickness.
Around one-in-five people with depression in the UK have been prescribed an anticholinergic.
What are the side effects of anticholinergic and antispasmodic drugs?
- Blurred vision
- Dry mouth
- Dry eyes
- Decreased urine production
- Decreased sweat production
- Constipation
- Memory impairment
- Delirium
- Confusion
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