Table 3.
Adjusted odds ratios of dementia by prescription of an anticholinergic drug by Anticholinergic Cognitive Burden (ACB) score and drug class
| Drug class | No of cases (%) | No of controls (%) | Odds ratio (95% CI) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted at start of DEP* † | Adjusted at end of DEP* ‡ | ||||
| ACB score of 1 | |||||
| Analgesic | 23 871 (58.6) | 158 162 (55.7) | 1.02 (1.00 to 1.05) | 1.02 (0.99 to 1.04) | |
| Antidepressant | 5958 (14.6) | 28 767 (10.1) | 1.37§ (1.32 to 1.42) | 1.25§ (1.20 to 1.30) | |
| Antipsychotic | 8051 (19.7) | 50 079 (17.6) | 1.05§ (1.02 to 1.08) | 1.04 (1.01 to 1.07) | |
| Cardiovascular | 27 926 (68.5) | 191 895 (67.6) | 0.97 (0.94 to 0.99) | 0.98 (0.95 to 1.01) | |
| Gastrointestinal | 10 845 (26.6) | 71 814 (25.3) | 0.97 (0.94 to 0.99) | 0.96§ (0.93 to 0.99) | |
| Respiratory | 9385 (23.0) | 62 787 (22.1) | 0.99 (0.97 to 1.02) | 0.99 (0.97 to 1.02) | |
| Other | 11 521 (28.3) | 77 345 (27.2) | 0.95§ (0.92 to 0.97) | 0.95§ (0.92 to 0.98) | |
| ACB score of 2 | |||||
| Analgesic | 385 (0.9) | 2337 (0.8) | 1.03 (0.92 to 1.15) | 1.03 (0.92 to 1.16) | |
| Antipsychotic | 22 (0.1) | 69 (0.0) | 1.44 (0.87 to 2.36) | 1.35 (0.82 to 2.23) | |
| Antiparkinson | 57 (0.1) | 141 (0.0) | 1.55§ (1.12 to 2.14) | 1.32 (0.96 to 1.82) | |
| Respiratory | 19 (0.0) | 123 (0.0) | 0.89 (0.55 to 1.45) | 0.83 (0.51 to 1.36) | |
| Other | 985 (2.4) | 5454 (1.9) | 1.07 (1.00 to 1.15) | 1.09 (1.01 to 1.17) | |
| ACB score of 3 | |||||
| Antidepressant | 8823 (21.6) | 50 817 (17.9) | 1.13§ (1.10 to 1.16) | 1.11§ (1.08 to 1.14) | |
| Antipsychotic | 1036 (2.5) | 5140 (1.8) | 1.09 (1.02 to 1.18) | 1.07 (1.00 to 1.16) | |
| Gastrointestinal | 1817 (4.5) | 12 057 (4.2) | 0.94 (0.89 to 0.99) | 0.94 (0.89 to 0.99) | |
| Antiparkinson | 270 (0.7) | 951 (0.3) | 1.45§ (1.25 to 1.68) | 1.29§ (1.11 to 1.50) | |
| Respiratory | 4002 (9.8) | 25 195 (8.9) | 1.04 (1.00 to 1.08) | 1.03 (1.00 to 1.07) | |
| Urological | 3261 (8.0) | 16 873 (5.9) | 1.23§ (1.18 to 1.28) | 1.18§ (1.13 to 1.23) | |
| Other | 284 (0.7) | 1741 (0.6) | 0.99 (0.87 to 1.13) | 0.99 (0.87 to 1.13) | |
DEP=drug exposure period
Adjusted for age, region, any falls, any fractures, and number of doctor consultations in the 12 months before the DEP. Also adjusted for the number of prescriptions during the DEP for the following drugs not rated as anticholinergic: benzodiazepines, z drugs, antidepressants, antinausea and antivertigo preparations, antiepileptics, and antiparkinson drugs.
Adjusted for the following variables measured at the start of the DEP: body mass index, smoking status, harmful alcohol use, depression duration (0, 0-2, 2-5, 5-10, 10-20, and >20 years), and all diagnoses listed in table 1.
Adjusted for the following variables measured at the end of the DEP: body mass index, smoking status, harmful alcohol use, depression duration (0, 0-5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, and >20 years), and all diagnoses listed in table 1.
P<0.01.