Some Common Drugs May Increase Risk of Dementia

Some common drugs may cause increased risk of dementia.
Some common drugs may cause increased risk of dementia.

Research conducted in 2019 has strengthened the connection between the risk of dementia and a common class of drugs used to treat a variety of symptoms.

Anticholinergics are a type of medication that blocks the action of acetylcholine. That’s a chemical messenger (or “neurotransmitter”) in the brain that help coordinate breathing, digestion, urination and other functions.

Anticholinergics can treat a variety of ailments, including urinary incontinence.

Considerable’s recent article entitled “These common prescription drugs could boost your risk of dementia” reports that anticholinergics include a roster of drugs for depression (such as Paxil), psychosis (such as Thorazine), Parkinson’s disease (such as Cogentin) and bladder disorders (such as Ditropan).

The 2019 study found a nearly 50% increase in chances of dementia in those people who received more than 1,095 daily doses of these drugs in a 10-year period.

The research was published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

The study, sponsored by the University of Nottingham, monitored 284,343 patients age 55 and older between 2004 and 2016. The researchers examined the total standardized daily doses (TSDDs) of anticholinergic drugs during that time period.

The researchers said that this was the equivalent to a senior taking a strong anticholinergic medication daily for at least three years.

Researchers looked at each person’s anticholinergic exposure and found the most frequently prescribed anticholinergic drugs were antidepressants, drugs to treat vertigo, motion sickness or vomiting and an overactive bladder.

The researchers at the University of Nottingham discovered that some other anticholinergic antihistamines and gastrointestinal drugs failed to correspond to a higher incidence of dementia.

The UK study shows a correlation between these specific anticholinergic drugs and increased chances of dementia. However, the researchers cautioned that seniors shouldn’t stop taking any medications without talking with their doctor.

Reference: Considerable (July 1, 2020) “These common prescription drugs could boost your risk of dementia”

 

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Long Term Care Costs Going Up Due to COVID-19?

Long term care costs are already expensive, but will likely increase due to costs from COVID-19. No one can predict how much, so it is better to plan now.

About 70% of seniors 65 and older will eventually require some type of long term care in their lifetimes. That care already isn’t cheap, but how will prices be affected by COVID-19?

Motley Fool’s recent article asks “Will COVID-19 Drive Up the Cost of Long-Term Care?” According to the article, unfortunately those figures may begin to look like a bargain in the coming years as facilities change their policies and long term care costs go up after COVID-19.

The impact of the coronavirus has been experienced throughout the country, but we all see that nursing homes are an especially hard hit. As of April 23, there were over 50,000 reported COVID-19 cases in long-term care facilities, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, and to date there are well over 100,000. In six of the 23 states that are publicly reporting death rates (Delaware, Massachusetts, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Colorado, and Utah), deaths in long-term care facilities are at least half of all COVID-19-related fatalities.

Again as of April, COVID-19 has been detected in at least 4,000 long-term care facilities across the country and has caused more than 10,000 deaths among residents and staff members. As a result, nursing homes and other long term care facilities will most likely reconsider how they train and rotate staff and implement sanitary standards to avoid this from occurring again.

All of this is will likely come at a cost, and the question will be if that expense is passed on to seniors, who can hardly afford these facilities in the first place.  If so, long term care prices, already difficult for many to manage, will increase.

We can’t really predict if you’ll require long term care in the future and to what extent. We also don’t know how much long term care costs will go up in the coming years after COVID-19. However, you may be well served to purchase long term care insurance while young enough and healthy to qualify.  See here for more information.  https://galligan-law.com/when-should-i-consider-long-term-care-insurance/

The best time to apply is during your mid-50s, so that you aren’t paying those premiums for too many years. However, you’re also applying at a time when you’re relatively young and more apt to get a nice discount on your premiums based on your age and health. However, if you’re already past your mid-50s, you still should look at applying in your 60s, too, especially if your health is good.

Not all long term care policies are created equal. Different policies offer varying levels of coverage. Take the time to assess your financial resources, research the cost of long-term care in your area and determine the amount of coverage you think you’ll need.

If you don’t have a plan for the rising costs, then you’ll have to consider either private paying the higher rates, or seeking government benefits to cover the costs.  Time will tell what effect COVID-19 has on Medicaid.

Even if COVID-19 doesn’t directly mean big increases, the cost of long term care has already been increasing every year. The more financial protection you have, the less stress you and your family will have when you are older.

Reference: Motley Fool (May 5, 2020) “Will COVID-19 Drive Up the Cost of Long-Term Care?”

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Gene May Be a Link between Dementia and the Coronavirus

Is a gene the link between dementia and vulnerability to Covid-19?
Is a gene the link between dementia and vulnerability to Covid-19?

The study in Great Britain is the latest to suggest that genetics may play a part in why some people are more vulnerable to COVID-19 than others. It may also help to explain why people with dementia have been hard hit.

“It is not just age: this is an example of a specific gene variant causing vulnerability in some people,” said David Melzer, a professor of epidemiology and public health at Exeter University and a co-author of the study.

The Guardian’s recent article entitled “Research reveals gene role in both dementia and severe Covid-19” explains that the study published in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences reports how researchers analyzed data from the UK Biobank, where genetic and health data on 500,000 volunteers aged between 48 and 86 has been collected.

The researchers focused on a gene called ApoE which gives rise to proteins involved in carrying fats around the body and can exist in several forms. One such variant, called “e4”, is known to impact cholesterol levels and processes involved in inflammation, as well as increasing the risk of heart disease and dementia.

They found 9,022 of almost 383,000 Biobank participants of European ancestry studied had two copies of the e4 variant, while more than 223,000 had two copies of a variant called “e3”. The former have a risk of dementia up to 14 times greater than the latter.

The researchers then studied positive tests for COVID-19 between March 16 and April 26, when testing for the coronavirus was primarily done in hospitals, suggesting the cases were severe.

The results showed that 37 people who tested positive for COVID-19 had two copies of the e4 variant of ApoE, while 401 had two copies of the e3 variant. After considering factors such as age and sex, the researchers say people with two e4 variants had more than twice the risk of severe Covid-19 than those with two e3 variants.

One professor observed that it is possible that the role of ApoE in the immune system is important in the disease. Future research may be able to harness this to develop effective treatments.

You may also be interested in https://galligan-law.com/the-symptoms-of-early-onset-alzheimers-disease/.

Reference: The Guardian (May 26, 2020) “Research reveals gene role in both dementia and severe Covid-19”

 

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