No Causal Effect of Benzos or Z-Drugs on Dementia Incidence

History of Benzodiazepine Prescriptions and Risk of Dementia: Possible Bias Due to Prevalent Users and Covariate Measurement Timing in a Nested Case-Control Study

American Journal of Epidemiology

Published: 27 March 2019

 

Abstract

Previous estimates of whether long-term exposure to benzodiazepines increases dementia risk are conflicting and are compromised by the difficulty of controlling for confounders and by reverse causation. We investigated how estimates for the association between benzodiazepine use and later dementia incidence varied based on study design choices using a case-control study nested within the United Kingdom's Clinical Practice Research Datalink. N=40,770 dementia cases diagnosed between April 2006 and July 2015 were matched to 283,933 controls on age, sex, available data history and deprivation. Benzodiazepines and Z-drug prescriptions were ascertained in a drug exposure period 4-20 years prior to dementia diagnosis. Estimates varied with the inclusion of new or prevalent users, with the timing of covariate ascertainment, and with varying time between exposure and outcome. There was no association between any new prescription of benzodiazepines and dementia (adjusted odds ratio 1.03; 95% confidence interval 1.00, 1.07), while among prevalent users and inverse association was observed (adjusted odds ratio 0.91; 95% confidence interval 0.87, 0.95), although this was likely induced by unintentional adjustment for colliders. By considering the choice of confounders and timing of exposure and covariate measurement, overall our findings are consistent with no causal effect of benzodiazepines or Z-drugs on dementia incidence.

 

Source:

https://academic.oup.com/aje/advance-article/doi/10.1093/aje/kwz073/5421030

n.b. As of the day/time of this post, there is a link to the original unedited manuscript from the above page.

That's a positive thing!

 

On a personal note, I know a lady who is over 95 years old, has used a benzo for at least 40 years and then later a Z-drug, she still uses these medications & is mentally fit.

 

best wishes

Likewise, I know a woman who is approaching 100 years old and has been on Valium for decades. She's as smart as a tack.

 

P.S. I can't say that she'd fare well with Klonopin or Ativan or even Xanax. Valium seems to be in a different class.

Very interesting that this paper has been published just now .. perhaps because of current Public Health England review .. we continue to wait for the outcome. 

It's still inconclusive, as it always has been. I doubt it's possible to find a conclusive answer for this question with so many possible confounding factors and genetic variations among people. Those of us who have taken benzos on a long-term basis are basically guinea pigs in a large human experiment. For some, these meds are okay. For others, not. It's a crap shoot.

 

In my individual case, I already know these meds (both benzos and SSRIs) have caused long-term problems, since I'm so dizzy that I can't walk or move properly. My cognition is okay, but being trapped in my body due to dizziness is torture.

It's still inconclusive, as it always has been. I doubt it's possible to find a conclusive answer for this question with so many possible confounding factors and genetic variations among people. Those of us who have taken benzos on a long-term basis are basically guinea pigs in a large human experiment. For some, these meds are okay. For others, not. It's a crap shoot.

 

In my individual case, I already know these meds (both benzos and SSRIs) have caused long-term problems, since I'm so dizzy I can't walk or move properly. My cognition is okay, but being trapped in my body due to dizziness is torture.

 

Dementia is my biggest concern now, my cognition has been shot to pieces, 40 years on benzos, 35 years on antidepressants, thankfully I did refuse ECT or I might have been irreversibly brain damaged in my 20s .. I am sorry you are trapped in your body due to dizziness, I am no longer suffering physically, these drugs should never be prescribed other than very short term indeed.  I do not remember what happened yesterday or last week, each day passes in a blur, I am only 64.

Then there's my 94 year old mother who never took a drug in her life and has severe dementia.

Right! And last week I heard a CBC Radio interview on the topic of Alzheimers and how little they actually know, despite the research that's been done to this point and the various drug trials that have taken place.

 

The brain is infinitesimally complicated. Unravelling its mysteries is no small feat.

Thanks for posting!

Thanks for posting!

Thank you!  I was brilliant (at 60) prior to quitting Xanax!  Now my brain is mush. 

 

 

SaraSue