Impact of Anticholinergic Burden on Cognitive Performance: A Cohort Study of Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Older people are susceptible to the adverse effects of anticholinergic medications, including cognitive impairment.1 A systematic review of observational studies reported mixed associations between high anticholinergic burden, a cumulative measure of anticholinergic medications, and cognitive performance in older people.2 Observational studies may have biased estimates of the impact of exposures, as the exposed and unexposed may systematically differ in covariates associated with the outcomes.3