Nearly 14 Percent of Older Adults With Dementia Are Prescribed a Combination of Medicines Affecting the Central Nervous System

A study published in JAMA found almost 14 percent of older adults with dementia filled prescriptions for multiple drugs that target the central nervous system (CNS), or the brain and spinal cord, which can elevate the risk of serious side effects, according to the U.S. National Institute on Aging . CNS-active drugs are used to treat depression and other mental health conditions, prevent seizures, and reduce pain. Older adults with dementia sometimes have behavioral and psychological symptoms, and healthcare providers may prescribe CNS-active drugs to treat those symptoms. The researchers analyzed Medicare claims data on more than 1 million adults with dementia ages 77 to 88. In total, 13.9 percent filled prescriptions for three or more CNS-active drugs for more than 30 days straight, and more than half of those adults had the drugs for more than 180 days. People who were prescribed a combination of CNS-active drugs also had higher rates of insomnia, mental health conditions, and pain not associated with cancer and seizure disorders. The authors could not, based on the claims data, ascertain whether the medications were prescribed to treat those conditions.