Non-drowsy antihistamines, which barely reach the brain, climbed too
Among 714,052 patients, second-generation antihistamines climbed with cumulative dose from 11% to 26% higher. The sedating ones climbed further, from 13% to 51%.
What the study found
Non-drowsy antihistamines climbed with dose too
This is the finding that undercuts the usual explanation. Second-generation antihistamines barely enter the brain, yet in the same 714,052 patients their dementia risk climbed with cumulative dose as well, from 11% higher to 26%. The sedating ones climbed further, from 13% to 51%.
The caveat · More prescriptions, more diagnoses
A pattern shared by drugs that do and do not reach the brain points somewhere other than the drug. More medicine dispensed means more medical contact and more chances for a diagnosis to be recorded, and heavier users are sicker to begin with. The authors call for trials to confirm any association.
What we don't know
A pattern shared by drugs that do and do not reach the brain points somewhere other than the drug. More medicine dispensed means more medical contact and more chances for a diagnosis to be recorded, and heavier users are sicker to begin with. The authors call for trials to confirm any association.