PET scan of a human brain with Alzheimer's disease. Credit: public domain
A drug commonly used to manage symptoms of Alzheimer disease and other dementias—donepezil—is associated with a two-fold higher risk of hospital admission for rhabdomyolysis, a painful condition of muscle breakdown, compared with several other cholinesterase inhibitors, found a study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).
Dementia is a growing problem, with almost 10 million newly diagnosed cases every year around the world.
The study, led by researchers at Western University's Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and Lawson Health Research Institute, looked at ICES data from 2002 to 2017 on 220 353 patients aged 66 years or older in Ontario, Canada, with a new prescription for donepezil, rivastigmine or galantamine, three cholinesterase inhibitors used to manage dementia and Alzheimer disease.
Researchers found that donepezil was associated with a two-fold higher risk of hospitalization for rhabdomyolysis, a serious condition that can result in kidney disease. The relative risk was small but statistically significant.
"The findings of this population-based cohort study support regulatory agency warnings about the risk of donepezil-induced rhabdomyolysis," writes Dr. Jamie Fleet, a postgraduate year 4 resident in physical medicine and rehabilitation now at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, with coauthors. "Reassuringly, the 30-day incidence of a hospital admission with rhabdomyolysis after initiating donepezil remains low.
"Risk of rhabdomyolysis with donepezil compared with rivastigmine or galantamine: a population-based cohort study" is published September 16, 2019.
More information: Canadian Medical Association Journal (2019). www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.190337
Journal information: Canadian Medical Association Journal
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2019-09-commonly-drug-alzheimer-disease-hospitalization.html?utm_source=nwletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=daily-nwletter
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