| Title: | Regular use of opioids and dementia, cognitive measures, and neuroimaging outcomes among UK Biobank participants with chronic non-cancer pain |
| Journal: | Alzheimer's & Dementia |
| Published: | 19 May 2025 |
| Pubmed: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40390206/ |
| DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70177 |
| URL: | https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdfdirect/10.1002/alz.70177 |
Publication 15308
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Abstract
INTRODUCTION: We investigated the association between regular opioid use and incident dementia, neuroimaging outcomes, and cognitive measures.</p>
METHODS: Cox regression was used to assess the association between opioid use and incident dementia among197,673 UK Biobank participants with chronic non-cancer pain. Linear and logistic regression were applied to explore the associations between opioid use and dementia-related neuroimaging and cognitive function outcomes.</p>
RESULTS: Regular opioid use was associated with a 20% higher risk of all-cause dementia and a 49% higher risk of vascular dementia (VD) compared with those not using analgesics. Moreover, those using strong opioids had a 72% higher risk of all-cause dementia and a 155% higher risk of VD. Strong opioid use was also linked to reductions in hippocampal, white matter, and total brain volumes. Lastly, regular opioid use was associated with lower fluid intelligence.</p>
DISCUSSION: A higher risk of dementia was observed among participants regularly using opioids, escalating with opioid strength.</p>
HIGHLIGHTS: Regular opioid use was associated with an increased risk of all-cause dementia and VD. Those using strong opioids had a much higher risk of all-cause dementia and VD. Strong opioid use was also associated with worse neuroimaging outcomes. Regular opioid use was also associated with lower fluid intelligence.</p>
17 Keywords
- Aged
- Analgesics, Opioid
- Biological Specimen Banks
- Brain
- Chronic Pain
- Cognition
- Dementia
- Female
- Humans
- Magnetic Resonance Imaging
- Male
- Middle Aged
- Neuroimaging
- Neuropsychological Tests
- Risk Factors
- UK Biobank
- United Kingdom
8 Authors
- Tengfei Lin
- Jed A. Barash
- Shiyu Wang
- Fuxiao Li
- Zhirong Yang
- W. Andrew Kofke
- Feng Sha
- Jinling Tang
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