Malnutrition leads to poor clinical outcomes in dementia patients. The investigator aimed to examine the association between drug burden index (DBI) and anticholinergic burden (ACB) scores with nutrition status in community-dwelling older adults with dementia, considering that drugs may contribute malnutrition. A total of 415 outpatients with dementia, evaluated by Mini Nutrition Assessment test and registered drug information, are included in the study. The investigator calculated the DBI as the sum of all sedatives and anticholinergics taken continuously for at least four weeks prior to admission and evaluated the ACB score. Practice Impact: Due to accompanying chronic diseases and symptoms, cholinergic and/or sedative-loaded drugs are often prescribed to dementia patients. In this study, Ä°nvestigators emphasized that in addition to the cholinergic loads of the drugs used, their sedative loads and the drug doses they use are also important. Avoiding prescribing these medications to patients with dementia will protect them from malnutrition and its negative consequences.
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Number of participants with malnutrition, malnutrition risk and healthy
Timeframe: Baseline
Number of participants with high DBI (Drug Burden Index) score
Timeframe: Baseline
Number of participants with high ACB (Anti Cholinergic Burden) score
Timeframe: Baseline