A new study suggests that some antibiotics, antivirals, anti-inflammatory medications, and vaccinations are “associated” with a reduced risk of dementia, while other medications are “associated” with an increased risk of dementia.
A recent press release regarding a study conducted by the University of Cambridge and the University of Exeter stated, “Antibiotics, antivirals, vaccinations and anti-inflammatory medication are associated with reduced risk of dementia, according to new research that looked at health data from over 130 million individuals.”
According to the press release, researchers reviewed information from 14 previous studies that included data on over 130 million patients and one million cases of dementia. The press release announced that researchers “identified several drug classes associated with altered risk” of dementia and published their discoveries in “Alzheimer’s and Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions.”
Addressing the need for dementia treatments, Dr. Ben Underwood from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, said, “We urgently need new treatments to slow the progress of dementia, if not to prevent it.”
Underwood added, “If we can find drugs that are already licensed for other conditions, then we can get them into trials and — crucially — may be able to make them available to patients much, much faster than we could do for an entirely new drug.”
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The recent study indicated that certain medications, such as antibiotics, anti-inflammatory medications, and antivirals, as well as certain vaccines, can reduce an individual’s risk of dementia,
Regarding anti-inflammatory medications, the press release stated, “Inflammation is increasingly being seen to be a significant contributor to a wide range of diseases, and its role in dementia is supported by the fact that some genes that increase the risk of dementia are part of inflammatory pathways.”
The study also showed that some medications, such as antipsychotic drugs, were linked with an increase in an individual’s risk of dementia. Additionally, researchers noted that there was “conflicting evidence” regarding blood pressure medications, anti-depressants, and diabetes medications and an increased or decreased risk of dementia.
Addressing the future of dementia treatment following the recent study, Underwood said, “Pooling these massive health data sets provides one source of evidence which we can use to help us focus on which drugs we should try first. We’re hopeful this will mean we can find some much-needed new treatments for dementia and speed up the process of getting them to patients.”
Dr. Chris Vercammen, a physician at Remo Health who did not participate in the study, told Fox News that “systematic reviews” like the review conducted by the University of Cambridge and the University of Exeter allow researchers to develop a “more comprehensive understanding” of different subjects by compiling information from multiple studies.
