MCI Patients in Europe: Medication and Comorbidities. The DESCRIPA Study

The main objective of the present study was to investigate the prevalence and type of medication taken by MCI patients in the DECRIPA cohort. A secondary objective was to assess the cognitive function of these patients and the relationship between the results of neuropsychometric tests and medication use.

We selected 880 subjects (375 males, 505 females) who were older than 55 years without obvious causes of cognitive impairment. A complete history was obtained for all patients. In addition, demographical data were collected and several factors were studied, including the types and dosages of the medications taken. Comparisons between groups were statistically analyzed in relation to the number of medications.

Most patients (85.7%, n=754) were taking at least one medication during the study period. The median (interquartile range-IQ) number of medications per participant was 3 (1-5), whereas 40% of the patients took at least 4 medications. The types of medications that were most often taken were cardiovascular drugs (62.0%), antidepressants (16.8%), sedatives (14.6%), thyroid drugs (10.0%) and anti-diabetic drugs (7.6%).

On average, MCI patients take three medications for the prevention or treatment of an average of two medical conditions. The most prevalent types of medications were cardiovascular drugs, antidepressants, sedatives and thyroid drugs. Significant differences in the number of medications taken were observed for gender and age.