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Medication Effects on Cognition

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Physician's Field Guide to Neuropsychology

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Abstract

Assessment of cognitive functioning is an ever-growing field of medicine and pertinent with an aging population. Screening for impairment is often focused on brief performance measures of attention and memory with organic disorders foremost among possible causative diagnoses. However, assessing for nonorganic factors that may contribute to cognitive dysfunction such as poor sleep, mood disorders, and medications is essential in ruling out potentially reversible causes of impairment. This chapter will focus on medications and their impact on cognition. While there are many classes of medications reported to impact cognitive functioning, this chapter will review four common medication types regularly prescribed in a primary care setting (e.g., psychotropic medications, sleep medications, anticholinergics, and pain medications), as well as address issues of polypharmacy.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Boise VA Medical Center – V-IMPACT TeleHub, Boise, ID, USA

    Jeffrey A. Sordahl & Jessica Litke

  2. Family Medicine Residency of Idaho, Geriatric Medicine, Boise, ID, USA

    Jennifer Lewis

  3. Boise VA Medical Center, Medical Service, Geriatrics and Palliative Care Division, Boise, ID, USA

    Megan Dunay

  4. University of Washington Internal Medicine Residency, Seattle, WA, USA

    Megan Dunay

Authors
  1. Jeffrey A. Sordahl
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  2. Jessica Litke
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  3. Jennifer Lewis
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  4. Megan Dunay
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA

    Karen M. Sanders

Chapter Review Questions

Chapter Review Questions

  1. 1.

    What are some of the risk factors associated with the likelihood of medications having an effect on cognition?

  2. 2.

    What are the benefits to a medication evaluating when a patient presents with memory complaints?

  3. 3.

    How might an integrated care approach benefit patients presenting with cognitive problems who are also medically complex (e.g., several medical problems, prescribed >5 medications)?

  4. 4.

    Why are cognitive screens, observation, or clinical interview not sufficient independently for a diagnosis of dementia?

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Sordahl, J.A., Litke, J., Lewis, J., Dunay, M. (2019). Medication Effects on Cognition. In: Sanders, K. (eds) Physician's Field Guide to Neuropsychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-8722-1_33

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-8722-1_33

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-8720-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-8722-1

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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