Donepezil may reduce the risk of comorbidities in patients with Alzheimer's disease: A large-scale matched case-control analysis in Japan

INTRODUCTION: Few studies have focused on the association between donepezil and physical comorbid conditions in Alzheimer's disease patients. METHODS: We investigated the association between donepezil prescription and the occurrences of comorbidities in Alzheimer's disease patients, by using an electronic medical records database which contains case-based information on approximately three million patients from more than 60 hospitals across Japan. RESULTS: Nine thousand seven hundred forty-nine patients had at least one diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease between 2001 and 2015. To test the robustness of the results, we used a risk set sampling method, and the matched cohorts based on age, sex, comorbidity level, and duration of illness consisted of 1406 cases and an equal number of controls. From the multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusted for covariance, less occurrence of physical comorbidities was associated with donepezil prescription in the matched cohort. DISCUSSION: Although the mechanisms are unknown, donepezil may have positive effects on both cognition and physical status.