MEDICATIONS CAUSING COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT

I HESITATED BEFORE PASSING THIS ON BECAUSE THE POSSIBILITIES ARE SO POTENTIALLY SIGNIFICANT. WHEN I WAS IN PRACTICE, I HAD ON ONGOING BET WITH MY PATIENTS THAT ANY SYMPTOM THEY HAD COULD BE FOUND AMONG THE SIDE EFFECTS OF THEIR MEDICATION. I ALMOST ALWAYS WON THAT BET. ONE THING THE PHYSICIANS DESK REFERENCE DID WAS GIVE AN INDICATION OF THE FREQUENCY OF THE SIDE EFFECT, BUT OFTEN NOT THE SEVERITY. SO IT IS WITH THIS PRESENTATION AS WE DON'T GET EITHER PIECE OF INFORMATION. DEMENTIA IS SUCH A DEVASTATING CONDITION THAT WE ALWAYS NEED TO CONSIDER THE EFFECTS OF MEDICATION FIRST, OR AL LEAST EXCLUDE THEM IN OUR EVALUATION OF COGNITIVE OR MEMORY IMPAIRMENT. ALZHEIMER'S OR SOMETHING ELSE?