Statins increase delirium in elderly patients

Elderly patients taking statins have a 28 per cent increased risk of developing delirium, new research shows.

A report by the University of Toronto published today looked at elderly patients who underwent elective surgery and who had received two or more prescriptions for statins in the year before surgery.

Delirium, as well as causing anxiety in patients and families, contributes to longer hospital stays, a prolonged need for intensive care, and can disrupt and delay care.

Researchers found that one in 14 elderly patients were taking statins before surgery and one in 90 experienced delirium. They also found that longer surgeries and being over the age of 70 increased the risk of delirium.

“Our results suggest that this association was more than a coincidence, particularly among patients who received higher doses of statins and had longer duration noncardiac surgeries,” the authors claims.

“The association between statins and risk of delirium was distinct and was not observed with other lipid-lowering medications, cardiovascular medications or common drugs that reflect underlying chronic diseases but have no major effects on the cardiovascular system.”

Today’s report found that temporarily stopping taking statins before surgery actually lowered the risk of dementia.