title: Comparative cardiovascular safety of dementia medications: a cross-national study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To compare the cardiovascular safety of currently marketed dementia medications in new users in the United States and Denmark.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Nationally representative sample of Medicare beneficiaries from 2006 through 2009 and nationwide Danish administrative registries from 1997 through 2007.
  
  
  METHODS
  Individuals treated with a dementia medication aged 65 and older.
  
  
  METHODS
  Hospitalizations for myocardial infarction (MI), heart failure, and syncope or atrioventricular block in both cohorts; fatal or nonfatal MI and cardiac death in the Danish cohort; and all-cause mortality in sensitivity analyses.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In 46,737 Medicare beneficiaries and 29,496 Danish participants, donepezil was the most frequently used medication. There were no substantial differences in the risk of MI or heart failure between participants using donepezil and those using other cholinesterase inhibitors (all hazard ratios (HR) crossing 1). In the Danish cohort, memantine was associated with fatal or nonfatal MI (HR = 1.33, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.08-1.63), cardiac death (HR = 1.31, 95% CI = 1.12-1.53), and a trend toward higher rates of hospitalization for MI (HR = 1.31, 95% CI = 0.98-1.76). Memantine was also associated with greater risk of all-cause mortality in the Medicare (HR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.13-1.28) and Danish (HR = 1.83, 95% CI = 1.73-1.94) cohorts, suggesting that sicker individuals were selected for memantine therapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cholinesterase inhibitors have similar cardiovascular risk profiles. Associations between memantine and fatal outcomes in Denmark may be related, in part, to selection of sicker individuals for memantine therapy.
authors.affiliation: Duke Clinical Research Institute, School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27705, USA. emil.fosbol@duke.edu
authors.forename: Emil L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Fosbøl
authors.forename: Eric D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Holm
authors.forename: Gunnar H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Gislason
authors.forename: Yinghong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Lesley H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Curtis
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Køber
authors.forename: Isao
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Iwata
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Torp-Pedersen
authors.forename: Soko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Setoguchi
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003704:Dementia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D003718:Denmark; D000077265:Donepezil; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000139:chemically induced; D006801:Humans; D007189:Indans / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D006278:Medicare; D008559:Memantine / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000139:chemically induced; D018697:Nootropic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D010880:Piperidines / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D007189:Indans; D018697:Nootropic Agents; D010880:Piperidines; D016194:Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; D000077265:Donepezil; D008559:Memantine