Effect of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on risk of Alzheimer's disease: systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies
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Objectives To quantify the risk of Alzheimer's disease in users of all non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and users of aspirin and to determine any influence of duration of use. Design Systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies published between 1966 and October 2002 that examined the role of NSAID use in preventing Alzheimer's disease. Studies identified through Medline, Embase, International Pharmaceutical Abstracts, and the Cochrane Library. Results Nine studies looked at all NSAIDs in adults aged > 55 years. Six were cohort studies (total of 13 211 participants), and three were case-control studies (1443 participants). The pooled relative risk of Alzheimer's disease among users of NSAIDs was 0.72 (95% confidence interval 0.56 to 0.94). The risk was 0.95 (0.70 to 1.29) among short term users (< 1 month) and 0.83 (0.65 to 1.06) and 0.27 (0.13 to 0.58) among intermediate term (mostly < 24 months) and long term (mostly > 24 months) users, respectively. The pooled relative risk in the eight studies of aspirin users was 0.87 (0.70 to 1.07). Conclusions NSAIDs offer some protection against the development of Alzheimer's disease. The appropriate dosage and duration of drug use and the ratios of risk to benefit are still unclear.
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Multiple epidemiological studies show that anti-inflammatory drugs such as NSAIDs have a sparing effect on AD.
“Multiple epidemiological studies show that anti-inflammatory drugs such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have a sparing effect on AD [108–110].”
From Tau and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer’s disease: interplay mechanisms and clinical translation (2023) · cites this paper as [110]
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References 37 · Cited by 511
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Hebert R, Lindsay J, Verrault R, Rockwood K, Hill G, Dubois MF. Vascu- lar dementia: incidence and risk factors in the Canadian study of health and aging. Stroke 2000;31:1487-93.
- Authors
- Etminan, M., Gill, S., & Samii, A.
- Affiliations
- Royal Victoria Hospital (CA)
- University of Toronto (CA)
- University of Washington (US)
- Corresponding author
- Etminan, Mahyar
- ORCID
- Etminan, Mahyar
- Venue
- BMJ
- Publisher
- BMJ
- Published
- 2003-07-17
- Volume
- 327
- Issue
- 7407
- Pages
- 128
- ISSN
- 0007-1447 (ISSN-L)
- 0959-8138
- 1468-5833
- PMC
- PMC165707
- OpenAlex
- W2127401575
- Cited by
- 511
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 22 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 18 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 24 · 2014: 17 · 2013: 13 · 2012: 27
- FWCI
- 5.02
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- www.bmj.com/company/legal-information/terms-conditions/legal-information/tdm-licencepolicy (tdm)
- Locations
- BMJ (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- University of Toronto
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research
- NIH Clinical Center
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Inflammatory mediators and NSAID effects
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
- Keywords
- Alzheimer's disease, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, aspirin, duration of drug use, disease risk, neuroprotection, older adults, risk-benefit assessment
- MeSH terms
- Aged, Alzheimer Disease, Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal, Aspirin, Humans, Middle Aged, Risk Factors, Cohort Studies, Odds Ratio, Case-Control Studies, Risk Assessment
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