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Updated: Jun 17, 2025

A Machine Learning Approach to Design an Efficient Selective Screening of Mild Cognitive Impairment
Published on: January 11, 2020
Association between polypharmacy and cognitive impairment in older adults: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Xiaoyun Yu1, Ying Qian1, Yudie Zhang1
1School of Nursing, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, PR China.
Objective:
This meta-analysis explored the relationship between polypharmacy and cognitive impairment in older adults.
Methods:
We systematically searched for observational studies on polypharmacy and cognitive impairment in the Cochrane Library, PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, and CINAHL databases and performed meta-analysis to pool the study results using fixed- or random-effects models. The quality of evidence was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment Development, and Evaluation system.
Results:
Twenty-seven studies involving 124,452,121 older adults aged >60 years were included. These studies showed that the risk of cognitive impairment was significantly increased in older adults with polypharmacy (≥5 medications) (OR = 1.39, 95% CI: 1.23-1.58, P < 0.001) and in those with excessive polypharmacy (≥10 medications) (OR = 1.51, 95% CI: 1.01-2.25, P = 0.042).
Conclusion:
This study suggests a potential association between polypharmacy and cognitive impairment in older adults. However, the causal relationship requires further verification.
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