Anticholinergic burden in middle and older age is associated with lower cognitive function, but not with brain atrophy.

ABSTRACT:

Aims

The aim of this study is to estimate the association between anticholinergic burden, general cognitive ability and various measures of brain structural MRI in relatively healthy middle-aged and older individuals.

Methods

In the UK Biobank participants with linked health-care records (n = 163,043, aged 40-71 at baseline), of whom about 17 000 had MRI data available, we calculated the total anticholinergic drug burden according to 15 different anticholinergic scales and due to different classes of drugs. We then used linear regression to explore the associations between anticholinergic burden and various measures of cognition and structural MRI, including general cognitive ability, 9 separate cognitive domains, brain atrophy, volumes of 68 cortical and 14 subcortical area

SUBMITTER: Mur J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10953410 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature